Klopp at Liverpool, Season 4: We’ve won it 6 times, one defeat too many and Divock in the derby

This is the fourth part in our series charting Jurgen Klopp’s nine seasons at Liverpool from his 2015 arrival to his upcoming departure from Anfield. In case you’ve missed them, you can check out parts one, two and three.

The agonising manner in which Liverpool lost the 2018 Champions League final left them approaching two diverging paths. Would it be a case of the Reds missing out on their one big opportunity, or would it provide the springboard towards them finally getting over the line with Jurgen Klopp in charge?

By the start of the following season, the team was very much his after some eye-catching summer moves. Fabinho came in from Monaco within days of the defeat to Real Madrid in Kyiv. Naby Keita’s long-awaited arrival took place, while Xherdan Shaqiri was plucked from relegated Stoke. Emre Can departed on a free transfer and Ragnar Klavan also moved on.

However, the biggest transfer – in terms of the fee and the impact at Anfield – was the £66.9m acquisition of Alisson Becker. Loris Karius’ woes in the Champions League final laid bare the problems that Liverpool had in the goalkeeping department ever since Pepe Reina’s departure earlier in the decade. Could Brazil’s number one finally be the answer to that long-standing conundrum?

A sequence of six wins to start the Premier League season, with only two goals conceded, indicated that the Reds were a far different beast from their previous erraticism under Klopp. The 100% record ended with draws against Chelsea and Manchester City, although Daniel Sturridge’s stunning last-gasp equaliser and a late Riyad Mahrez penalty miss made those feel like points gained rather than dropped.

While the top-flight campaign was progressing serenely, LFC were staring down the barrel of an early exit from the Champions League, having lost all three away matches in the group stage. It left them needing to beat Napoli in their final game to avoid exiting the competition.

Mo Salah netted the only goal of the night at Anfield, but much of