OpinionJurgen Klopp’s Liverpool hope to shake off history with Premier League title challenge after ‘curse’ of second place
- Graeme Souness, Gerard Houllier, Rafa Benitez and Brendan Rodgers all dropped down the table after finishing second
- Bill Shankly famously said second was ‘nothing’ but the club is stable, Jurgen Klopp is healthy and they have kept their stars
“If you’re first, you’re first,” Bill Shankly said. “If you’re second you’re nothing.”
The great Liverpool manager and the Kop’s guiding spirit ingrained that ethos at Anfield but even the Scot might have been impressed with the team last season.
Jurgen Klopp’s side gained 97 points in their pursuit of Manchester City in the English Premier League and there is huge optimism on Merseyside that the team can overturn their one-point deficit to Pep Guardiola’s side.
The first big test for Liverpool will be maintaining the standard of the previous campaign. Since the club last won the title in 1990, they have finished second four times.
On each occasion the following season saw a significant drop-off in performance.
In 1992 Graeme Souness’s team slumped to sixth. Things were very different at Anfield 27 years ago.