Stephen Warnock says training is about to become so much more difficult for Liverpool’s players

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Liverpool are entering into the final international break of the season in incredible shape.

By this time tomorrow we’ll know whether Liverpool still have a shot at winning all four trophies this term. Even if they have been knocked out of the FA Cup by Manchester United, the outlook still looks very good indeed.

But according to former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock, the intensity of gunning hard in four different competitions could soon catch up to Jurgen Klopp’s players in training. Speaking on The Official Liverpool FC Podcast, Warnock warned that winning is the only way to keep the inevitable fatigue away.

“From now onwards, this is the hardest part of the season,” said the 42-year-old. “Not just a physical aspect, but mentally. Going into training pretty much every day for the last six months is tough. It’s gruelling because you know you’re going in to run and work hard every single day and be asked to be playing at an intensity that’s sky high. It’s ridiculous levels to maintain throughout the season.

“When we look at the draw now for the final stages of the Europa League, do you think Liverpool can walk to the final? Also, take into consideration the FA cup, all the better teams are still in it towards the end so the games become harder and you start to bring extra-tine into games as well.

“So, suddenly you’re asking the players to do more in a short space of time, under more pressure having already done six months of work to get to that point. That’s where the fatigue starts to slowly come in. The only way you get rid of that fatigue is by winning.”

Liverpool ready for final slog

This is a point worth making from Warnock. However, we actually think it could have more relevance to Liverpool in terms of next season.

Plenty in this Reds squad have actually been here before with Liverpool. Although a number of players have left, there are still many of survivors from the 2021/22 season.

Two years ago, Liverpool also went for everything they possibly could. Winning two out of four trophies was still a success, but narrowly missing out on the Premier League and Champions League cut the squad and staff deep.

As a result of those scars and that fatigue, the Reds dropped off hugely in the following campaign. They’d been left exhausted by the relentlessness of the previous season.

There are a couple of reasons that that should not happen to Liverpool again. The first is that they’ll have a brand new manager bringing a brand new energy. There should be no stagnating.

The second is that two years ago, Liverpool’s squad was ageing pretty badly. Those experiencing the biggest drop-offs from the quadruple push were almost exclusively already over the age of 30.

No matter how Liverpool end this season, they should be better placed to start again in 2024/25.

Nevertheless, Warnock’s words shouldn’t be dismissed out of hand. The Reds will of course push themselves as much as they can over the next two months, but they don’t have to empty the tank completely.