It's been a rotten season for Liverpool - but Jurgen Klopp has admitted that it could have been so much worse were it not for Alisson.
Less than 12 months after coming close to an unprecedented quadruple, the Reds strumbled out of the starting blocks and were quickly eliminated from the Premier League title race. More misery followed in both domestic cups before Real Madrid dumped them out of Europe to end any hopes of lifting silverware this year.
Despite those setbacks, Liverpool have rallied to the point where qualifying for next year's Champions League is now a real possibility - a feat that would have been unthinkable just a few weeks back.
Saturday's 1-0 win over Brentford means Klopp's side have now chalked up six straight victories in the Premier League. However, they have still been indebted at times to Alisson, who was lauded by Klopp after Liverpool's win against Fulham earlier this month.
"He is the most consistent player we have this season," Klopp conceded. "If his level dropped as well we would be completely lost."
Although Liverpool have been impressive and consistently in the conversation for major honours since recruiting Alisson from AS Roma back in 2018, the sight of the Brazilian shot-stopper coming to the Reds' rescue has been a recurring theme.
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Speaking back in 2019 after Alisson's first season at Anfield, Klopp admitted that he was taken aback by the impact his new 'keeper had made at Anfield. He told ESPN Brasil: "Well, maybe that Ali is such a good football player.
"It was always very clear that he was a very influential player with the ball, but that he's this good I didn't see it, honestly - maybe because of a different style Roma played. That was a little bit of a surprise, and a very nice surprise."
Alisson has form for stepping up in difficult circumstances, too: it was during another tough campaign for Liverpool back in the 2020/21 season that the 30-year-old was the Reds' standout performer.
Furthermore, he even managed to contribute at the other end of the pitch with a late goal in a win at West Brom which proved to be crucial in the Reds' bid to clinch a top-four finish.
It remains to be seen if Liverpool will repeat that feat in the coming weeks; they are currently in 5th place, just one point behind Manchester United, who have played a game less.
Liverpool have just three games remaining this term: a trip to struggling Leicester, a meeting with Unai Emery's Aston Villa at Anfield and a final-day joust with bottom club Southampton.
