"If you cannot be one of the best four teams, you still have to develop and that's what we did," is what Jurgen Klopp said the last time Liverpool finished outside the top four.
Back then preparations were underway for their dead rubber against West Bromwich Albion as they finished eighth in the Premier League in 2015/16. The Reds ended up with 60 points.
This season, they have accumulated the second-worst total under Klopp as Liverpool come to terms with playing Europa League football next season. Unlike seven years ago, however, European football is secure. While that is one of the few positives from a dismal season littered with chastening defeats, the former Borussia Dortmund manager finds himself exactly where he was seven years ago.
