Philippe Coutinho might have left for Barcelona midway through the Premier League season, but with Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino in stunning form, the Reds have the class to finish strongly without the departed star.
With the spotlight firmly on the Barcelona star, we ask: Will Liverpool make the Premier League top four without Coutinho?
What side are you on in our debate?
Share with us your thoughts by using Twitter or getting in touch via Facebook.
ALEX REA, SAYS YES
As Philippe Coutinho strolled into Luton Airport his next stop was clear, but for the club he’s left behind that answer is not so obvious. The immediate question for Liverpool is where do they go from here and the answer lies in between nowhere and everywhere.
While there is a growing sense the Brazilian will not be replaced this month, supporters need not meltdown because Jurgen Klopp has all the attacking power he needs to clinch a top-four spot.
Granted, Coutinho is a quality player but the 25-year-old is not essential in the same way he was after the 2013/14 season. Back then, Liverpool’s title-challenging squad was dismantled over the course of two summers with Luis Suarez, Raheem Sterling and Steven Gerrard all departing.
Left with the likes of Mario Balotelli, Rickie Lambert and Fabio Borini, the forward momentum lost thrust and the engine of creativity was dependent on Coutinho. Now the Red machine is a sum of parts rather than individuals.
They’ve scored 76 goals in all competitions this season and Coutinho (12) accounts for just 15.8 per cent. Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane (47) are 61.9 per cent of the total and beyond that, they provide a blend of creativity and pace.
Behind them in midfield is the vastly improved Adam Lallana and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and the combination of those five alone offer the quality to absorb Coutinho’s absence. Individually, the Brazilian was their best player but collectively his qualities are spread across the squad. It’s important to emphasise that a quality footballer isn’t necessarily an indispensable one. Their win percentage in the 14 league matches with Coutinho stands at 42.9 per cent but they’ve triumphed in 75 per cent of the eight he’s missed.
You can say the likes of West Ham, Huddersfield and Stoke are cannon fodder but it’s against perceived lesser sides Liverpool notoriously struggle to break down.
The reality is they have already navigated past teams without Coutinho and so there is no excuse for landing outside the top-four in May.
CHRIS BAILEY, SAYS NO
The way that this played out suggests Liverpool were spooked by Barcelona’s supposed pursuit of Antoine Griezmann.
Surely then Barca’s budget would have been blown, leaving Jurgen Klopp with an unhappy player on the verge of mutiny after watching his boyhood dream slip by.
That’s the only justifiable reason, and it’s a pretty flimsy one at that, as to why the Reds let Coutinho go in January.
Surely they could have used the carrot rather than the stick on the wantaway midfielder if they told him that he’d be free to leave before or after the World Cup. He won’t even be able to play in the Champions League for the rest of the season because he’s cup tied.
He’d been performing extremely well despite all the hullabaloo – and tears while on international duty with Brazil – over the summer. Liverpool are losing a player who has contributed either a goal or assist every 73 minutes across the Premier League and Europe.
Much has been made of the fact that Klopp’s men average 2.2 points a game in the EPL this season without the Brazilian as opposed to 1.8 without. But it’s not that simple, as Coutinho has missed games against relative cannon fodder such as Huddersfield, a pre-Moyes West Ham and Stoke.
The beauty of Coutinho also lies in his flexibility. He can line up further forward in a midfield three, or as a roaming playmaker nominally on the wing.
With the fitness and form of Adam Lallana and Sadio Mane – two key attackers who now need to pick up the slack – under scrutiny, Coutinho’s departure only becomes more baffling.
Liverpool currently have a three-point cushion inside the top four but with Manchester City on the horizon that could be cut as soon as next week. If Tottenham hit any kind of form, they will be toast.
Virgil van Dijk is likely to be a hit at the back, but the Reds have effectively added a vertebra to their spine before removing another. Now they can’t patch it back up until the summer.
