Five events to halt Liverpool’s quadruple tilt include Klopp’s kids faltering, Arsenal *not* bottling it

Liverpool supporters have been unbearable since winning the Carabao Cup so the footballing gods cannot allow them to do the quadruple. And luckily for us, these five events could get in Jurgen Klopp’s way of pulling off something unprecedented in his final season at Anfield…

Man City do their thing
Starting with the obvious, we have the prospect of Man City going on *another* Premier League title-clinching unbeaten streak towards May.

This feels almost inevitable as it has occurred with freakish regularity during Pep Guardiola’s remarkable stint as head coach at the Etihad.

This season, Man City’s title rivals have been gift-wrapped several early-season signs of an incoming post-treble dip but up to now, they look likely to come to no avail as Guardiola’s men are starting to purr at the right time with Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne back in the fold.

Man City’s Guardiola-inspired robotic brilliance has prevented Liverpool from dominating English football during Klopp‘s reign but the two superb teams have at least treated neutrals to an all-timer Premier League rivalry.

In previous years, Liverpool have gone punch for punch with City but eventually fell short in each campaign except for the 2019/20 Covid-disrupted season.

Now Guardiola, Klopp and their respective teams are entering the final chapter of their storied feud. While it would be very apt if Liverpool fell short of their bitter rivals in the title race one last time, the two sides may be outdone by the over-celebrating mob from the Emirates…

Arsenal *don’t* bottle it
Liverpool had a season off in 2022/23 but thankfully for us, Mikel Arteta’s side stepped up in their absence to push Man City in the title race.

The Gunners were expected to kick on from their bittersweet fifth-place finish in 2021/22, but they surpassed all expectations to mount a sustained tilt at the title.

Arteta’s enthusiastic and talented group of players were the Premier League pace-setters for much of the campaign before – as they did in 21/22 – ran out of steam (or bottled it) during the run-in to end the season feeling bitterly disappointed.

In the last two seasons, Arsenal have been the leader of the pack and ended up crumbling under the pressure, but they have not stuck to that script this time around.

Arsenal are firmly placed as the third-favourites in this season’s three-horse Premier League title race after their sharp decline in form came around the New Year instead of the end of the campaign.

In recent years, Arsenal’s dip came at a time when there was no opportunity for them to offer a response, but this term they have proven that Arteta’s blossoming squad are capable of doing just that.

Dispatching opponent after opponent with ease and earning a much-needed win over Liverpool along the way, Arsenal are thriving while having the tag of underdogs and their two title rivals would be foolish to sleep on them as this season nears its climax.

READ MORE: Liverpool target comes into Premier League XI of the season at left-back

Klopp’s kids get found out in the FA Cup
Liverpool’s young guns have rightly been lauded following their fearless performance in the Carabao Cup but with Klopp’s injury crisis showing no sign of easing, they will be given more thorough tests in the coming weeks than the easy ride a charitable Chelsea side afforded them at Wembley.

Their first could come on Wednesday night as they must recover from their Carabao Cup final high to deliver in the FA Cup fifth round against Championship high-flyers Southampton at Anfield.

If Klopp had a fully fit squad to choose from, this tie would still be considered a potential banana skin but their chances of progression would be far greater.

Liverpool still head into this tie as favourites, but Southampton and potential future foes will be far less forgiving than Chelsea in attempting to dampen Klopp’s farewell party.

Klopp’s successor ends Europa tilt
Over in the Europa League, Liverpool are unsurprisingly being billed as favourites to win the second-tier European competition but their sternest test in this competition may be against a team managed by one of their iconic former players.

Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen have taken European football by storm this season as German giants Bayern Munich and the cursed Harry Kane look set to succumb to the unbeaten Bundesliga leaders in the title race.

Should Liverpool and Leverkusen meet in the Europa League, the Premier League giants may suffer a similar fate to Bayern.

Leverkusen are yet to break stride in pursuit of their unprecedented glory and while Klopp is out to leave Liverpool on a huge high, Alonso is intending to do the same with the German champions in waiting.

Despite being linked with Real Madrid and Bayern Munich, Alonso’s ‘clear preference’ is reportedly to join Liverpool in the summer and while the job of replacing Klopp may be a poisoned chalice, he would at least have one over the German if he manages to lift European silverware before making the switch to Anfield.

READ MORE: ‘Klopp’s kids vs billion pound bottlejobs’ narrative stunted by Carragher missing the obvious

Real Madrid kryptonite
Alonso ending Liverpool’s quadruple hopes with Leverkusen before returning to Anfield as manager is too good a narrative to ignore and if he pulls it off, his side would join an exclusive group of clubs to get the better of Klopp’s mentality monsters on a big European night.

Just as Man City have often been Liverpool’s kryptonite in the Premier League, Real Madrid have been an insurmountable obstacle for Klopp in the Champions League.

Klopp may low-key be a tad disappointed to have to settle for a Europa League challenge in his final year rather than the elite Champions League, but it does at least mean he does not have to come up against Real Madrid.

The adored German head coach may still indirectly feel the effects of his Real Madrid kryptonite, though.

This is because – and bear with us – Liverpool could come up against Benfica in the knockout stages. Now, you will be wondering how this relates to Real Madrid but it does (sort of)…

Imagine the scene, Liverpool are facing Benfica deep into the Europa League knockout stages and who crops up with a late winner for the Portuguese side to knock out the English side? None over than former Real Madrid and Manchester United winger Angel Di Maria! I can hear Sergio Ramos laughing from Seville…