IN the modern game, league champions are very close to retaining their title. The elite in almost every country are strong enough to maintain their place at the top, so unless there is a financial collapse or a series of very bad decisions, champions have a very good chance of repeating their triumph. This doesn’t necessarily make for a very healthy or very interesting title race, but it’s a fact.
When a league champion fails to live up to its reputation, it comes as a shock not only to the club’s supporters, but to the wider football community. Liverpool certainly feel this season is ‘after the Lord Mayor’s Show’, although there are a number of considerations such as the tragic death of Diogo Jota, the loss of Luis Diaz to Bayern Munich and Trent Alexander-Arnold to Real Madrid, the Mo Salah affair and the influx of new talent finding it difficult to establish themselves. Liverpool spent £450 million on new players, including two signings worth more than £100 million, offset by £195 million in turnover. Such a wave of spending was quite unusual for modern Liverpool and it was a brave move, but perhaps it was too much in one roll of the dice?
The Liverpool team that started the season against Bournemouth included four big signings, including Florian Wirtz, Hugo Ekitike, Jeremy Frimpong and Miloš Kerkez. Alexander Isak would soon follow, an in-demand striker who, like Wirtz, cost well over £100 million. The most expensive players in the summer period were perhaps the most difficult to integrate into the Slot system.
Some may argue that Arne Slot inherited a talented team from Jürgen Klopp and won the Premier League in the process, but any rebuilding will take time to work, even if some of this season’s results are very hard to swallow. But perhaps the title win in 2024/25 was in fact the end of an era, the pinnacle of the Klopp empire?
Liverpool’s 20e It appears at this stage that the title will be followed by a disappointing final placing in 2025-2026. They are currently seventh. Historically, 68% of their titles have been well defended, with five retentions, seven second-place finishes and one third-place finish. Overall, the Premier League champions have made a good effort to maintain the momentum, with 85% finishing in the top three. Liverpool have the squad to overcome the current difficulties and push their way into the Champions League slots.
Across Europe, most of last season’s champions are still in a dominant position. Bayern Munich’s record is better than that of 2024-2025; they are undefeated in the Bundesliga, scoring 51 goals in 14 games. In Spain, Barcelona is back at the top with a comparable result to the first seventeen games of last season. PSV Eindhoven is also in pole position in the Netherlands again, with an average of more than three goals per match.
In France, Paris Saint-Germain are facing stiffer opposition this season, with Lens at the top of Ligue 1 and Lille and Marseille breathing down their necks. PSG have lost twice in the league, but in 2024/25 they were unbeaten after 16 games. They have scored less, but their defense remains strong.
The Italian title race appears to be more competitive, with Inter, Milan, Napoli and Roma all tightly packed at the top of Serie A. Napoli, last season’s champions, have been top at times but are currently in third place. Interestingly, Napoli conceded thirteen goals in the 2024-2025 season, compared to three, but their results are more or less the same.
Portugal could also have an interesting second half of the season. Reigning champions Sporting are in second place, five points behind Porto, the unbeaten leader. Their only defeat was against Porto at home. Benfica, meanwhile, is in third place, eight points clear of Porto and also unbeaten. The three matches between the clubs will be crucial to winning the title; Porto hosts Sporting on February 8, Benfica plays Porto at home on March 8 and the Lisbon derby, Sporting versus Benfica, is on April 19.
Elsewhere, champions on familiar ground include Russia’s Krasnodar, Belgium’s Union Saint-Gilloise, Greece’s Olympiacos and Czech champions Slavia Prague.
As for Liverpool, their title defense is far from the worst; Leicester City (2016-17) and Chelsea (2015-16) both had worse records, and if you go back further in history: Leeds United in 1992-93, Ipswich Town 1962-63, Chelsea in 1955-56, Sheffield United in 1898-99, Manchester City in 1937-38 and Everton in 1928-29 had terrible campaigns after losing the heights of last year. It could have been so much worse, but how much patience do Liverpool have with their coach?
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Game of the People was founded in 2012 and is ranked among the 100 best football websites by various sources. The site consistently wins awards for its work, across a wide range of topics. View all posts by Neil Fredrik Jensen
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