Liverpool respond to wake-up call in the style of champions
This was nothing more than a full stop at the end of the final sentence in the story of a stunning season for Liverpool and even that was applied with an artist’s flourish by Jurgen Klopp’s side.
The champions rounded the campaign off in the same style they began, with a comfortable win over vastly inferior opponents, brushing aside a Newcastle team who had the audacity to take the lead after 24 seconds, but never looked strong enough, with a makeshift defence, to hold on to it.
That goal came from Dwight Gayle, from a quickly taken freekick by Jonjo Shelvey, but Virgil van Dijk equalised with a looping header before half-time and two superb strikes from Divock Origi and Sadio Mane made things simple.
“I’m not sure we needed a wakeup call, but we got it,” said Klopp. “After that, the boys worked really hard to break down the defensive wall of Newcastle and the performance, while not perfect, was like our season really. I’m really, really happy with it.”
None of it really mattered. Everything that was important to these two clubs was settled weeks ago – a first league title for Liverpool in 30 years, Premier League survival at the end of another mediocre campaign for Newcastle United.
At Liverpool, attention has already turned to transfer plans and a debate about whether Klopp needs to add a big money signing to an already awesome roster.
The adage goes that you always strengthen from a position of strength, yet, equally what is the point in spending money on players you do not really need because they are no better than the ones you already have? Liverpool are so much better than any other team in Enginto land, which players are out there, in a depressed Covid-19 market, who can improve them?
As for Newcastle, the future remains torturously undecided. After more than four months, nobody knows whether a proposed takeover by a Saudi-led consortium will go through. The chances appear to be slim, given it has stalled for so long while the Premier League wrestles with moral and legal issues to do with the illegal streaming of English football in the kingdom.
No takeover attempt has attracted more controversy than this one, but it is Newcastle’s supporters who suffer. As things stand, despite the emergence of a rival bidder in American Henry Mauriss, Mike Ashley remains Newcastle owner and Steve Bruce will still manage next season. Bruce deserves credit for what he has achieved given the team were tipped to go down when his predecessor Rafael Benitez departed, but it is still nothing to get excited about. Bruce wants to improve the team, but if Ashley remains in control, history tells us that is unlikely.
“It has been a long hard season, it has been difficult and there has been some unrest,” Bruce said. “I spoke to Mike Ashley in the week and he wanted to say thank you to me, the staff and the players and we will speak again next week. We need some clarity on the takeover, it’s gone on too long.”