We gave Jurgen Klopp a complete Liverpool squad for the season and the results were spectacular

After a strong start, the 2023/24 season did not go as planned for Liverpool, but without injury problems could Jurgen Klopp have given it a fairytale finish?

When Klopp announced he would call time on his nine-year tenure as Liverpool boss, the Reds were in a fantastic position, challenging for all four trophies with whispers of a quadruple rife among the Liverpool faithful. But now the Reds head into the final game of the Premier League season in the title race with only the Carabao Cup to their name.

In a tough six weeks between March and April, Liverpool were knocked out of the FA Cup and Europa League in quick succession, while points dropped to Manchester United, Crystal Palace, Everton and West Ham in the league, ending their charge their title. The injury problems presented to Klopp have had an impact and without them who knows what could have happened.

So if Liverpool had managed to go injury-free throughout the season, what might have happened? Let’s take a look.

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Liverpool’s 2023/24 season has been simulated without injuries

To set up this simulation, we used Football Manager 2024, ensuring that every Liverpool player who has spent time on the sidelines this season is fully fit. This happened.

With a fully fit squad, Mohamed Salah continued to be the standout player at the club, with the Egyptian recording the highest average rating at 90 (7.91), ahead of Dominik Szoboszlai (7.47) and Luis Diaz (7.42) . Salah was not the top scorer, with Diogo Jota scoring 20 goals in all competitions, more than Salah (16), Diaz (14), Nunez (13) and Cody Gakpo (12).

Injury-free Thiago made 39 appearances in the 2023/24 season, with the Spaniard being used as a rotation player by Klopp. Elsewhere, other players who featured were Alexis Mac Allister and Virgil van Dijk, while Harvey Elliott received less game time with a bigger squad.

At the end of the season, Football Manager 2024 created the best overall Liverpool XI based on performances, statistics and other metrics. It looked like this:

Liverpool’s best full XI: (4-3-3): Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk, Konate, Robertson; Bajcetic, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister; Salah, Nunez, Diaz.

Liverpool’s best XI was mostly self-explanatory, although the only major injury-free change was the addition of Stefan Bajcetic to the best XI. Klopp used the Spaniard more than any other player in the simulation, with the midfielder making 49 appearances in all competitions.

Despite finishing the season as the club’s top scorer, Jota missed out on the best XI for Nunez. Goals did not prove to be a problem in the Premier League for Klopp’s side as they were involved in a title challenge until the penultimate day, but defeat to Aston Villa handed City the title.

Pep Guardiola’s side proved too good once again, City end the season with 84 points, four more than second-placed Liverpool. 25 wins, five draws and eight losses made up the Reds’ 80 points, with Klopp’s side actually winning more games than anyone else in the simulation.

76 goals meant that Liverpool finished the campaign with the second best attack in the league, but defensively they were not impenetrable, ending the season with the fourth best defensive record. Despite not winning the Premier League, having a fully fit squad helped in all competitions, with the Reds ending the 2023/24 season with three trophies to their name.

As in real life, Liverpool won the Carabao Cup with the Reds beating Burnley 3-0 in the simulation final, while a 2-1 win over Manchester United in the FA Cup secured the domestic double. Klopp also managed to win the only trophy that eluded him during his time as Liverpool boss, with Mac Allister and Diaz getting on the scoresheet as the Reds beat RB Leipzig 2-1 to lift Europe League.