Jurgen Klopp Liverpool FC
Jurgen Klopp Liverpool FC

Liverpool take on Crystal Palace in their final Premier League game of the season and they just need a comfortable win to ensure a top-four finish.

At one point in time, Liverpool were 8th on the league table and qualifying for the Champions League looked like a distant dream. But since then the players have fought back and over the past couple of weeks, a series of wins have ensured that the Anfield outfit manage to get back into the top-four at the perfect time.

This is the very same Liverpool side who have played not one but two Champions League finals in recent years and manager Jurgen Klopp has claimed that the fight for a top-four finish is nothing short of playing in a major final.

The manager said in his press conference: “It is clear, we could not have come into this situation if the boys would not have shown this kind of character, their very special character. Life is like this: if you are not performing on your top level, people question your character from time to time. 

“It was a tough one, it is a tough one, and, again, nobody wants to talk about this season before we play the last game, but that we are in the situation that this game is so decisive is absolutely great news, absolutely great news.

“It is always like this: if you qualify for a final, everything is perfect but then we have to play the final, so don’t forget that!

“We experienced both ends of playing a final as a club, as a team, and we want to be on the positive end of this final. For this, we have to focus on the final.

“I can’t remember, we were in two or three European finals, you didn’t ask me, ‘Whatever happens on the final day, are you already happy with the way to Kiev, Basel or Madrid?’ I was then and would have said, ‘Yes, happy with that but let’s wait for the final piece.’ That makes all the difference and that’s what we are now thinking about.


“If you ever questioned the character of the players in the not-so-good periods, you have to ask yourself why you did that. The boys proved it now millions of times that it is not about their mentality or character if something is going wrong.”

Liverpool have had a series of injury woes this season and with players like Van Dijk, Gomez, Henderson and Matip all picking up long-term injuries, no one really thought they will even come this far.

A team like Liverpool not playing in the Champions League is almost unthinkable and now that they have secured at least a Europa League spot for the upcoming season, Klopp and his players will give it their all to beat Palace and ensure a stay in the top-four by the end of the final matchweek on Sunday.

The Merseyside outfit are tied on points with 5th placed Leicester City but they currently have a superior goal difference than the Foxes. So barring a massive win by Rodgers’ men, Liverpool should be safe if they can beat Palace.

Read: 4-3-3 Liverpool’s predicted XI vs Crystal Palace.

Read: Jurgen Klopp explains why his side were not brilliant against Burnley in midweek.

Read: With Wijnaldum leaving, can Jurgen Klopp sign this 26 Y/O replacement in time?