Trevor Steven: If Liverpool pull off the quadruple the achievement will never be repeated
Who is the best English club side of all time? The Liverpool of the 1970s? Sir Alex Ferguson’s Manchester United?
If the current Liverpool team can do the previously unthinkable and complete the quadruple over the next few weeks then it will unquestionably be them.
Already EFL Cup winners, they are in the FA Cup final, the semi-finals of the Champions League – where they play against Villarreal tomorrow – and just one point behind Manchester City in a two-horse race for the Premier League title.
It would be a truly monumental effort, especially considering that they Liverpool are up against not just the cream of Europe but, domestically, a City team currently seen as probably the best in the world.
Any side that can take on all of that and come out on top in every competition deserves to be recognised at the best of all time.
It hasn’t all been plain sailing; I don’t think anyone assessing Liverpool around Christmas time would have predicted this. It will have taken everyone at the club, from players and staff to ownership and fans, to be aligned in their belief in the team.
The Premier League is famous for the fact that no games are gimmes. It is 90 minutes of hard graft every time, allowing the quality of Liverpool’s individuals to make the difference.
Immense credit has to go to Jurgen Klopp, not only for producing this team but also for the way he has evolved it. Down the pecking order have gone players such as James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, with the likes of Thiago Alcantara and Luis Diaz coming in and only making Liverpool stronger.
Liverpool also have a proper captain in Jordan Henderson. A true leader, he deserves a lot of praise too. Even though he may not start every single game any more I can imagine what he is like behind the scenes, on the bench and in training.
A large part of their quadruple hopes rest on outdoing City, who they could also meet in the Champions League final. City probably have a slightly stronger defence but Liverpool are more potent in attack, as the goal difference shows. It may come down to who blinks first.
If Liverpool win a treble, missing out in the league or in Europe, people will say it was a step too far, an impossible achievement.
Personally, I think they will fall just short because City are such formidable rivals and have the Premier League’s best player, in Kevin De Bruyne.
As an Everton fan, I don’t care what happens across Stanley Park as long as my team stays in the top flight this season.
But if LIverpool do somehow pull off the quadruple it will be news forever. A new level. Uncharted territory.
Would it be healthy for football? I don’t think that’s a concern because we all know how hard the Premier League is. Instead we should focus on celebrating the achievement.
If they win the quadruple this Liverpool team will go down in history. Like Arsenal’s Invincibles of 2003-04, Klopp’s would be unique to this time and place, never ever to be forgotten and probably never to be emulated either.
Trevor Steven is a former England footballer who played at two World Cups and two European Championships. @TrevorSteven63.