2020 has been quite the an eventful year to say the least.
For Liverpool, it was one that finally saw the club end 30 years of title anguish after Jurgen Klopp inspired the Reds to a first Premier League triumph.
However, even for Klopp’s history makers, 2020 has thrown a few spanners in the works and a whole host of challenges to overcome.
Here are our three most controversial Liverpool moments of 2020…
Champions League exit to Atletico Madrid
While the 2019/20 campaign was full of unbelievable highs, there was one standout moment of gut-wrenching disappointment.
Liverpool’s exit from the Champions League at the hands of Atletico Madrid was settled by the finest of margins and one that left supporters pondering what had transpired.
The element of controversy regarding the Reds’ exit from Europe’s premier competition sadly fell at the feet of Liverpool goalkeeper Adrian.
The stand-in No.1 was, unfortunately, the culprit for the error that welcomed Atletico back into the tie while Liverpool were 2-1 up on aggregate in extra time.
Had Alisson been in-between the sticks, there is a feeling that Liverpool, indeed would have progressed into the quarter-finals and the overall outcome of the competition could have looked a whole lot different.
Villa Park capitulation
If Adrian was at fault for Liverpool’s Champions League exit in March, the Spaniard failed to cover himself in glory during arguably the most embarrassing display in Klopp’s Anfield tenure; a 7-2 defeat to Aston Villa.
It was Liverpool’s biggest loss since 1963 and one that had supporters almost laughing in sheer disbelief by the end.
The result came out of absolutely nowhere. Liverpool arrived at Villa Park in perfect form and practically full strength, other than Adrian in goal.
Remarkably, it is still Liverpool’s only defeat of the season, yet how meekly the Reds surrendered was something that had felt unparalleled to anything we have seen during Klopp’s time as manager.
A Merseyside Derby like no other
It’s painful to even re-write the events that transpired during the 237th Merseyside derby on October 17.
To say Klopp and his team were without the odd fortune of lady luck during the 2-2 draw at Goodison Park would be the understatement of the century.
A dubious VAR decision cost Liverpool a memorable injury-time winning goal from Jordan Henderson but that was the least of Klopp’s worries at full-time.
That particular fixture has had huge ramifications on Liverpool’s misfortunes since after the Reds lost two irreplaceable figures to injury.
For one, it saw Virgil van Dijk’s season all-but ended after a horror-challenge from Jordan Pickford left the Dutchman with a ruptured ACL which later required surgery.
It also represents the last time we saw Thiago Alcantara in action after the Spaniard also sustained a knee injury following a reckless tackle from Richarlison.
Both players haven’t played for Liverpool since and the fixture itself was the initial catalyst for a number of injury problems that have since decimated Klopp’s squad to its core.
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