Liverpool finished the 2019-2020 season with 99 points. Ninety-nine. It’s a remarkable achievement, beaten only by one team in the Premier League era, with that team being the one that we had to overhaul in order to claim the title. We’d doubtless have notched up even more had the title been on the line for longer, but it’s a sign of this side’s incredible dominance that we won it earlier than any other side has ever managed to. A look at the way the campaign panned out shows us that we’d notched up more points than Everton’s eventual total before the turn of the year and would have still won the title had we not played a single game after the restart. Asterisk indeed. The desperation of some to try to belittle what Jürgen Klopp’s side has achieved is made to look even more foolish when you consider how insanely dominant they’ve actually been, doing enough to be one of the best English sides ever to play the game.
When did #LFC get enough points to pass every other team’s final total this season? pic.twitter.com/WJpHPO5g2n
— The Tomkins Times (@thetomkinstimes) July 26, 2020
There will be a time in the coming weeks when conversations will need to be had about what this squad looks like moving forward. Divock Origi spent his time on the pitch at St. James’ Park doing what he’s done throughout his Liverpool career, for example. He was, for want of a better word, rubbish for the majority of the game but then scored the goal to make it 2-1. Is that a player worth sticking with, considering the drop off in quality from the front three to him? How about in defence, where it looks like Dejan Lovren is leaving and therefore we’ll only have three fit senior centre-backs moving into the next season? Conversations that will be necessary, but aren’t what’s needed right now. Right now we have a chance to quite rightly celebrate the incredible achievement of this side, who not only won the Premier League for the first time in thirty years but did so whilst also becoming champions of the world.
10: The Win Over City At Anfield
It’s easily forgotten now, but Manchester City were just six points behind us when they came to Anfield in Game Week 12. A win would have moved them within three and might have offered them undeserved hope. Instead, we won 3-1 and moved ourselves nine points clear of Pep Guardiola’s men. There’s an argument that that’s the moment the wheels came off their season.
9: The UEFA Super Cup
Having beaten Norwich in our opening game of the season, we needed to squeeze in the UEFA Super Cup match against Chelsea before a tricky visit to St. Mary’s. Having lost Alisson Becker to injury, many of us wondered whether our season would be de-railed before it even began. Up stepped Adrian, doing enough in the penalties to not only win us the trophy but also make Guardiola’s head go.
8: The Draw At Old Trafford
The Reds have long had an issue with visiting Old Trafford, suffering some sort of weird mental block that is inexplicable when you consider how rubbish they’ve been since Alex Ferguson retired. It looked like we were going to suffer the same fate when Marcus Rashford put them 1-0 up, only for Adam Lallana to equalise with five minutes to go, allowing us to maintain our momentum.
7: The Win At Villa Park
In terms of momentous results this season, this is probably the most important. City had won their match earlier in the day, meaning the Reds needed to win to maintain their advantage. We were having an off day and Aston Villa took the lead, but goals from Andy Robertson and Sadio Mané secured the three points in a massive turnaround.
We dropped points in just six games this season, and four of those came after the restart; three of those after we won the title. Absolutely magnificent. We may never see the like again. Walk around them.
— Chris Hewitt (@ChrisHewittLFC) July 26, 2020
6: The Club World Cup
I wanted Liverpool to break the points record because I wanted them to have something else alongside the Premier League to ensure the side is seen as one of the greatest ever. Then I remembered that we’re literally champions of the world, so there’s not much more that we need to prove to anyone.
5: Battering Crystal Palace
There was a sense of nervousness within the Liverpool fanbase when we drew 0-0 at Goodison Park after football resumed, in spite of the fact that we always seem to draw 0-0 at Goodison Park. The fear was that the break had taken away our momentum, but then we battered Crystal Palace at Anfield and looked every inch a title-winning side. The moment City’s minuscule hope evaporated.
4: The Community Shield Match
It might seem odd to put a glorified friendly that we lost on this list, but the important thing was that we stood toe-to-toe with City and sent a message that we weren’t going anywhere. In fact, most independent observers felt that we were the better side and Pep Guardiola’s men were lucky to get to penalties, certainly as far as our second-half performance was concerned. Shots fired.
3: City’s Loss To Chelsea
It’s perhaps equally odd to have a moment in which we weren’t even playing in the top ten, but I think an exception can be made here. I didn’t really expect Chelsea to get anything out of their game against Manchester City, but our convincing win over Palace might well have got into their heads. Mistakes and errors had plagued the Cityzens all season long, so it’s fitting that we got the title confirmed because of more. Thanks, Fernandinho.
And that’s that! 😁#LFCchampions pic.twitter.com/HS0Hg6RF2w
— Liverpool FC (Premier League Champions 🏆) (@LFC) July 26, 2020
2: The Win At The King Power
I was one of the people banging the drum that Leicester City shouldn’t be so easily dismissed, theorising that if it became a normal season then they’d be part of the conversation. A home win for them would put them back into the conversation, but instead we returned from the Club World Cup and absolutely destroyed them on their own turf. The moment I personally thought the title was won.
1: The Trophy Lift
It was the moment that we’d all been waiting for, some for far longer than others. It wasn’t how it was supposed to be of course, with no supporters in the ground. Yet the club did it exactly right and perfectly judged how the weird trophy lift needed to look. Jordan Henderson had teased us that there would be no ‘Hendo shuffle’, but in the end he delivered and it was a moment we’ll remember for ever.
