Three months after that amazing night in Madrid, Spain, Liverpool are set to begin the defence of the European crown they won at the Wanda Metropolitano Stadium to become six-time champions of Europe. Jurgen Klopp’s now reigning and defending Champions League victors have recently learned their fate and know exactly where they will be heading around Europe in the opening group games of the 2019/20 campaign.
In the latest Liverpool bets punters can back the Reds to prevail outright in the Champions League for a second straight season as one of the front runners once again at 13/2. The Merseyside club will be facing off with Belgium representatives Genk, Serie A giants Napoli and Austrian outfit Red Bull Salzburg. It’s clear that Napoli will be their main threats in a testing Group E, while Red Bull Salzburg could prove to be a surprise package and an away trip to Belgium to tackle Genk might be tougher than expected.
The Reds have shown early promise this current campaign, picking up where they left off last term when they narrowly missed out on their first-ever Premier League victory but managed to earn a sixth European Cup. They have started off in strong fashion as they have won all five of their opening top-flight games, while defending domestic champions Manchester City have dropped five points in these early proceedings.
That bodes well for Liverpool, who have showcased their typically rampant run going forward and solid spine at the back. Dutch defender Virgil van Dijk is the main man in the heart of that backline, of course, and the Anfield hero could well be getting his hands on the coveted Ballon d’Or in the coming months.
Such a personal honour would see him become the first centre-back to achieve that feat since Italian World Cup-winning legend Fabio Cannavaro back in 2006. Van Dijk will hope to become only the fourth defender in history to claim the award after his sublime heroics for Liverpool last season in Europe and during domestic duties.
You can try to run, but there’s no escaping @VirgilVDijk 💨pic.twitter.com/LRTM2zG9vE
— LFC USA (@LFCUSA) September 15, 2019
In the attacking ranks, it’s once again Egyptian ace Mohamed Salah that is leading the way after his incredible run of form since arriving on the red half of Merseyside. He has become one of the best players, not just in the Premier League, but in world football under the guidance of German coach Klopp. Meanwhile, Senegal goal-scoring machine Sadio Mane and Brazilian attacker Roberto Firmino continue to produce many memorable and key performances for their current club.
Klopp will hope all of his usual suspects can maintain their strong form and if fortunes go their way as well, then Liverpool could well be in the running for a second successive Champions League triumph next year. It would be a remarkable success for Klopp and his closely-knitted group of players but it’s one they will be confident of earning after last term.