Liverpool 's wretched start to the campaign isn't just cause for concern this season, but a worry for the Jurgen Klopp 's long-term ambitions, too.
The Reds currently sit ninth in the Premier League table, already 15 points adrift of leaders Arsenal and 13 behind reigning champions Manchester City after only 12 games - the most recent of which was a damning 2-1 defeat at home to Leeds on Saturday. Although they're already through to the knockout stages of the Champions League, having been less dreadful in Europe this term, Klopp's hopes of qualifying for the competition next season are shrouded in doubt.
Having never failed to achieve a top-four finish in his six full seasons at Anfield, the German now faces the prospect of missing out on the part. It'd cost more than £20million of his transfer budget next summer - and likely losing the race to sign Jude Bellingham.
Liverpool firmly believe that they're still in contention to sign the 19-year-old midfielder, who's widely expected to leave Borussia Dortmund in June 2023 after three star-making seasons with the Bundesliga giants. Bellingham has spectacularly gone from teenage prodigy at the Westfalenstadion to captaining the team on multiple occasions during his 109 senior appearances, a testament to both his outstanding ability and superb maturity both on and off the pitch.
Set to feature for England as part of Gareth Southgate 's starting XI at the World Cup later this month, the Birmingham-born ace will be highly sought after in the 2023 summer transfer window, with Liverpool remaining among the favourites to snap him up. However, if the Reds were to miss out of Champions League football, it'd be very difficult to convince Bellingham to move to Merseyside for both footballing and financial reasons.
Based on earnings from the 2021-22 season, Liverpool would fail to land a cool £15.64m if they don't reach the group stage. Add to that the prize money for each win or draw in the competition, plus the smaller share of prize money for a fifth-placed or lower Premier League finish instead of at least fourth spot, Klopp and co would be down more than £20m compared to their usual kitty.
Also concerning are those who could take the Reds' place at the top of European football and boast the prestige of playing in the Champions League, while enjoying the extra cash. Manchester United and Chelsea - as well as City and Arsenal - are naturally interested in winning the race for Bellingham, who's unlikely to except Europa League mediocrity at his next destination.
Of course, it's still well within the realms of possibility that Liverpool turn their campaign around and secure Champions League football for 23-24. Nevertheless, it remains a looming threat to the Anfield faithful that their alleged top transfer target will become out of reach.
Klopp has consistently maintained that his club don't have the financial clout of their rivals', making the aforementioned prize money even more important. "We cannot compare with the other clubs, they obviously don't have any limits," the Red boss claimed in August 2021. "We have limits."
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And last month, Klopp hit out at the likes of City, Newcastle and Paris Saint-Germain for their state-backed spending power. "Nobody can compete with City," he declared. "You have the best team in the world and you put in the best striker on the market. No matter what it costs, you just do it.
"It's just clear: there are three clubs in world football who can do what they want financially. It's legal, everything is fine, but they can do whatever they want. Competing with them? It's not possible to deal with that. I heard the Newcastle [sporting director, Dan Ashworth] say there's no ceiling for this club - he's absolutely right. There's no ceiling for Newcastle. Congratulations - some clubs have ceilings."
