Premier League 2016-17 preview, predictions: No. 6, Liverpool
With the 2016-17 Premier League season kicking off this weekend, FC Yahoo is rolling out previews for all 20 teams. We’ll be working our way up from the bottom of our predicted table, all the way to the champions.
Last season: Not even the early-October sacking of Brendan Rodgers and subsequent hiring of Jurgen Klopp could prevent Liverpool from finishing outside the Premier League’s top five for the sixth time in seven years. Klopp’s Reds seemed to find their form as winter bled into spring, but they couldn’t rise above eighth in the final table.
What’s changed: The two big signings are £36 million winger Sadio Mane from Southampton and £25 million midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum from Newcastle. But not insignificant are the additions of backup goalkeeper Loris Karius and defenders Joel Matip and Ragnar Klavan. Klavan especially could see plenty of the field. (Karius broke his hand in preseason.)
Klopp’s squad restructuring has sent a couple players in the other direction too. Joe Allen is off to Stoke, youngster Jordon Ibe is off to Bournemouth, and much-maligned center back Martin Skrtel was sold to Fenerbahce. Veteran defender Kolo Toure also left for Celtic on a free.
FC YAHOO TAKE
Henry Bushnell: Analyzing preseason friendlies with any sincerity is dumb. But Liverpool’s 4-0 thrashing of Barcelona last weekend merits an exception. If you didn’t see it, you missed out. It was awe-inspiring. Waves of Liverpool players swarming to the ball, winning it and storming forward. It looked, for the first time, like Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool, not some phony, makeshift, knock-off brand. Will that same team show up 38 times between this Saturday and May? Of course not. But there are signs that suggest Klopp’s influence is already sprinkled throughout this team. Mane is a perfect fit. Emre Can is ready to break out. This team is, at the very least, a top-four contender. Discount Liverpool at your own peril.
Joey Gulino: Klopp isn’t being given a short leash by the club or the fans, and that’s absolutely the correct move. The future is bright; the present is partly cloudy. Smart buys will bolster the attack, but it’s not potent enough to protect a slipshod back four that will be ripped apart as Liverpool adjusts to Klopp’s adventurous combination of ball pressure and spatial awareness. In most given years, this Liverpool side could be reasonably expected to finish top four. The Reds will push for it, but they’ll drop off in the shark-infested waters of this season’s Premier League.
Bookmakers say: Point total over/under: 67.5 | Title odds: 8/1 | Relegation odds: 350/1
FC YAHOO PREDICTIONS
Shahan Ahmed: 6 | Ryan Bailey: 5 | Alex Baker: 6 | Henry Bushnell: 5 | Joey Gulino: 7 | Joe Lago: 5 | Leander Schaerlaeckens: 5 | Average: 5.6 (6th)
More Previews
Arsenal | Bournemouth | Burnley | Chelsea | Crystal Palace | Everton | Hull City | Leicester City | Liverpool | Manchester City | Manchester United | Middlesbrough | Southampton | Stoke City | Sunderland | Swansea City | Tottenham | Watford | West Brom | West Ham
