If Liverpool never welcome back Crystal Palace and Christian Benteke to Anfield again, it will be too soon.

Palace’s 2-1 victory on Sunday was their third successive victory at Anfield in the Premier League, with Chelsea in 2005 the last team to achieve such a record.

Palace had already ruined Steven Gerrard’s Anfield farewell in 2015 with a 3-1 upset, before inflicting Jürgen Klopp’s first defeat as Liverpool manager in November of the same year.

Meanwhile, Benteke now has seven goals in eight appearances against the Reds, compared to only ten in forty-two in a Liverpool shirt. Liverpool just cannot handle the big Belgian whenever he comes to Anfield, harrowing the Kop with Aston Villa and now Palace.

To rub salt in the wounds, Sunday’s victory was Sam Allardyce’s first at Anfield after thirteen previous failed attempts in the Premier League.

Liverpool on the back-foot in top four hunt

So where do Liverpool go from here? Well, undoubtedly the Reds have missed a huge chance to put some distance between themselves and their rivals below, as four of the top six were engaged in the FA Cup semi-finals.

Yet Liverpool’s defeat on Sunday, coupled with Manchester United’s 2-0 victory at Burnley, has left the Reds only three points clear of their bitter rivals, and two clear of Manchester City, and both teams have two games in hand.

Moreover, Arsenal are now back in the Champions League race. Whilst they are nine points behind Liverpool, they have three games in hand and confidence will now be flying again following their narrow extra-time victory over City at Wembley.

After finding themselves at rock-bottom with their 3-0 defeat to Palace, Arsène Wenger’s side are in the FA Cup final and could build up considerable momentum in the next few weeks, as they chase a twentieth successive year in the Champions League.

By contrast, any momentum Liverpool created from their impressive victories away to Stoke City and West Bromwich Albion has been wasted.

Whilst Palace are not an easy team to play against, as Chelsea and Arsenal can testify, Liverpool have dropped far too many points to teams outside the elite. Their previous home fixture was a 2-2 draw against Bournemouth, emphasizing that the defeat to Palace was far from an isolated incident for Liverpool, and could be their undoing in their bid for a top four finish.

Fixture list remains favourable

However, despite these fears, the fixture list still remains in their favour, with trips to Watford and West Ham United – teams now safe from relegation and with little to play for – and home games against struggling Middlesbrough and Southampton.

Whilst it may be a stretch for Liverpool to sweep all four games to end the season, three victories will be in all likelihood good enough for Champions League football next season. José Mourinho’s United still have to face Manchester City, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur – all away from home – while the pressure remains on Arsenal to convert those three games in hand into victories in order to catch up, and they also travel to Tottenham as well as welcoming United.

However, if Liverpool fail to even achieve those victories, then not only will face an uphill task to make the top four, but they would scarcely deserve the achievement either.

Beating the top teams is all well and good, and provides some memorable moments across the season, but relying on such victories does not provide the consistency required to achieve a top four finish.

Liverpool face none of the top seven in their final four games, so if they do want Champions League football next season, they will have to overcome their biggest weakness.

Defensive issues rife again

A fully focused defence would help. Dejan Lovren was involved in both of Palace’s goals, and had a day that he would quickly like to forget. The Croatian generally is a solid defender, but Liverpool need more than just Lovren, Joël Matip and Ragnar Klavan next season.

For now, if Lovren and Matip can actually stay fit until the end of the season, then Liverpool are more likely to remain relatively solid at the back, even if Sunday was the polar opposite. Yet it will have to improve next season if Liverpool want to challenge for trophies.

To achieve this, surely a senior left-back is also required at Anfield. James Milner has performed well in the role this season, and Klopp does employ his full-backs almost as wingers, but left-back is not Milner’s favoured position.

If a club in the summer offered the 31 year old a central midfield berth next season, perhaps it would be best for both Milner and Liverpool to part ways, so that the Reds can return to a proper backline, with players operating in their right positions.

Most transfer rumours do remain rumours, however Liverpool are seemingly being linked with as many forwards as defenders, from Julian Brandt of Bayer Leverkusen to Lyon’s Alexandre Lacazette and Bayern Munich’s Douglas Costa.

Whilst additional firepower, and particularly width, would be welcome, Liverpool remain the top scorers in the Premier League, and the focus should be on signing defenders and defensive-minded players first and foremost.

A centre-back and a central midfielder (Virgil Van Dijk and Naby Keïta?) would be a great start but more is needed if Liverpool are to progress and hold off those below them.

Champions League football is almost essential in order to land these targets, but, regardless of whether the Reds secure top four or not, reinforcements are undoubtedly needed.

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About the author
Ben Lockett
I am a 21 year-old lifelong Liverpool fan. In 2006 I was a mascot for the Reds at Upton Park - meeting some of my heroes and leading out the team was one of the best days of my life and it helped fuel my passion for the club ever since. Currently, I am studying History at UCL. If you want a chat on all things Liverpool, then follow me on Twitter at @benlockett15.