Liverpool lost just nine games last season. Two of those losses came after they were crowned Premier League champions.
By November 26, a mere 15 weeks into the current campaign, they'd surpassed last season's total with ten defeats.
Since the 1-4 loss to PSV that miserable November night, the Reds are unbeaten, winning six and drawing five. But one of the Reds' primary goals for 2025/2026 is already kaput.
There are 17 Premier League games left to play. Barring complete breakdowns from Aston Villa, Manchester City, and Arsenal, who lead Liverpool by 8, 8, and 14 points, respectively, Arne Slot's side will not repeat as champions of England.
Which begs the question: What are Liverpool's objectives now that they've waved bye-bye to winning the league? Moreover, with availability concerns and a light squad to begin with, is Liverpool equipped with the players needed to achieve those goals?
Let's take off the red-tinted glasses for a second
Liverpool is out of the Carabao Cup thanks to their current bogey team, Crystal Palace. That leaves the Premier League, the FA Cup, and the Champions League. If we're being honest with ourselves, here's what should the Reds should shoot for in each competition.
The Prem is super straightforward: just secure a top five finish.
It doesn't behoove Slot to go all out for a miracle when the other two competitions are much likelier sources of silverware. This season's version of the league is dog eat dog — the gap between Liverpool in 4th and Bournemouth in 15th is nine points — so top five isn't a given. But when a choice must be made to rotate in a league game or a cup game, we may well see Slot go stronger in the cup game.
Realistically, Liverpool can push to win the FA Cup.
There were a handful of changes from the draw at Arsenal, but Slot fielded a strong team to take on Barnsley at home in the third round, showing a level of prioritization I wasn't positive he'd show. Get past Brighton in the next round, continue to pick strong starting XIs, and there's no reason Liverpool can't make a run to the final.
The Champions League is a different beast, though.
As we saw last season, you can mow down all comers during league play and still fall in the early knockouts.
Our style of play is actually suited to the current European game much more than the current English game, which is a plus. We're conceding much fewer goals than we were since our last UCL game, which is a plus. But to make a run in this competition, as last year's winners, PSG, showed, you need bags of quality up front and the ability to score goals.
Of course we should try to win it all, but with the attackers at our disposal, even when Mo returns from AFCON, I don't see us making it past the quarterfinals. Eventually we'll meet a Man City, or Arsenal, or Bayern, or Barca, and we haven't shown the cutting edge or mental fortitude it would take to knock off teams of that caliber, over two legs, in multiple rounds.
While we're at it, let's take a quick look at the squad
As of right now, the afternoon of January 16, here's what we're working with.
Goalkeepers: Alisson, Mamardashvili, Woodman, Pecsi.
Defenders: Gomez, van Dijk, Konate, Kerkez, Robertson, Frimpong, Ramsay, Lucky, Nallo.
Midfielders: Endo, Wirtz, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister, Jones, Gravenberch, Nyoni.
Forwards: Salah, Chiesa, Gakpo, Ekitike, Ngumoha.
Conor Bradley, Giovanni Leoni, and Alexander Isak have all had surgery and are out for months. Vitezslav Jaros, Kostas Tsimikas, Harvey Elliott, and James McConnell are out on loan. And we can safely assume that Freddie Woodman, Armin Pecsi, Calvin Ramsay, Wellity Lucky, and Amara Nallo, though available, won't see serious game time.
Including Wataru Endo, Trey Nyoni, and Rio Ngumoha — who Slot has repeatedly shown he doesn't fully trust — that leaves us with 20 first-team options:
Two goalies, two-and-a-half center backs, one-and-a-half right backs (Joe Gomez is the only defender who can play center back and outside back), two left backs, two holding mids Slot doesn't want to play, one holding mid Slot always plays, a number ten, three central midfielders, a right winger, a left winger, a striker, and two more wingers Slot doesn't want to play.
Sound like enough to you? Me neither.
The glaring holes at right back, at center back, and in the forward line are obvious. Until Mo Salah returns, Jeremie Frimpong is needed on the wing, and he's our only fit right back. We're depending on Gomez, who's always hurt, to cover two positions. Hugo Ekitike is our only nine and Cody Gakpo has been ineffective on the left and through the middle this season.
Which doesn't even account for the midfield. Ryan Gravenberch is our only top-quality six; if he gets injured, everything falls apart. Dom Szoboszlai is likely to play right back out of necessity, too, at least in the later stages of games.
And it's not all about having enough cover. The right signings could take our fit players to another level. We'll get more out of the likes of Florian Wirtz and Milos Kerkez if they have fresh, dynamic runners around them. We'll get more out of Ekitike with improved service.
Bottom line: we need at least one signing in defense, midfield, and attack. I'd settle for one signing, period.