IT WAS put to Virgil van Dijk after the Merseyside derby win against Everton on Wednesday that Liverpool’s season might seem less special due to recent defeats in the Champions League and League Cup.

It is a narrative that has been doing the rounds lately, and one Van Dijk is right to want to change.

Ironically, if Liverpool had gone out of the League Cup early and had not been so dominant in the league phase of the Champions League, their season might be held in higher regard than it currently is in some quarters.

In some ways, they are being criticised for their own success. These high-profile defeats only happen to good teams who are able to progress in multiple competitions, and, as Van Dijk says, those cup defeats should not take away from a so far special league season.

“So you’re suggesting this season is not going to be special any more?” Van Dijk said, answering a question posed post-match by Michael Owen.

“I think we have to change that narrative a little bit.

“We’re fighting for the biggest prize of the season. We worked so hard for something that 20 teams are also working so hard for — to try and be on top of the Premier League.

“We have eight games to go, we know what’s at stake, and we have to go for it. We have to fight, we have to enjoy the whole ride, and then let’s see.”

Liverpool have only lost once in the league so far this season — a 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest at Anfield in December.

To put this in context, only Arsenal in 2003/04 and Preston in 1888/89 have managed an unbeaten season in the English top flight, and only two other teams have lost just once in a Premier League season: Chelsea in 2004/05 and Liverpool themselves in 2018/19.

Liverpool are currently unbeaten away from home, and only four teams in the history of the English top flight have managed that — the Arsenal and Preston Invincibles, Manchester United in 2021/22 (!), and Arsenal in 2001/02.

There have been suggestions that Liverpool have got lucky in a season where there have been no other challengers for the title.

The idea of a lucky Premier League victory doesn’t make much sense, regardless of the winner and the circumstances in which they win it. 

If anything, the Premier League is as strong as it’s ever been, with teams throughout the league who can defeat anyone on their day.

It could be said that the other expected title challengers, Arsenal and City, have fallen away because they have not been able to cope with the increased strength of the league as a whole.

This is also why Liverpool need to keep their wits about them during the final eight games, as none of them will be easy.

Though it has not been about luck, if any team deserves some in the Premier League, it’s Liverpool. They have twice finished with points totals in the ’90s, in 2018/19 and 2021/22, only to be pipped to the title by Pep Guardiola’s equally extraordinary Manchester City teams on both occasions.

Liverpool’s 2018/19 points total was the most ever for a runner-up in the Premier League.

In the final weeks of the season, Liverpool will first need to get over the line and secure the title, before the games play out and the manner of the title win is shaped further.

Though achieving the wins and racking up the points is the important thing at the moment, Arne Slot’s side will also be looking to finish the season in style.

Reinforcing their status from earlier in the season, when they were not just the best team in England but also the best in Europe, will go some way to setting the narrative for how this season is remembered.

At the start of the campaign, few expected Liverpool to win the title in Slot’s first year at the club. The one or two who did tip them to top the table were not taken seriously. In this context, the achievement should not be underestimated, and this itself should form part of the narrative of the title win.

If Liverpool don’t lose a game between now and the end of the season, it will be one of the all-time Premier League performances in any context.

“It’s still looking very special in my eyes. I think what was said at the start of the season, no-one expected us to even try and fight on all four fronts.

“Obviously, we’re at the stage now where we’re still fighting for the biggest, and that’s the reality. So it’s still a possibility that this season will be very, very special.”

Heading into any season, including the next, the strength of Manchester City, both in terms of financial resources and sporting competence under Pep Guardiola and co, means they are always likely to be favourites, but their drop-off this year doesn’t mean that Liverpool have simply been handed this on a plate.

Liverpool’s transition to a new manager post-Jurgen Klopp was never going to be easy and might be even more difficult next season, given 2025/26 will be when many of Klopp’s stalwarts either leave or become part of a new-look team under Slot.

A rebuild is on the cards given there are already areas for improvement in the current squad and some of this squad is likely to leave — Trent Alexander-Arnold’s rumoured move to Real Madrid being the prime example.

Add to this the expiring contracts of Van Dijk and Mohamed Salah, and next season will be an even bigger test for the club, especially as expectations will be high on the back of a league title win.

Back-to-back league wins are difficult in any circumstances, which is why City’s four in a row should still be considered a remarkable feat regardless of their resources.

Everyone at Liverpool, especially those on the coaching, sporting and recruitment side of things, will need to be on the top of their game in the next year.

But rather than setting up the next season, whether with new hope, new worries, new signings, or planned criticism if they don’t follow it up with another title win, Liverpool’s current season deserves plenty of praise, and Van Dijk is correct that the narrative should focus on how special their Premier League performance has been.