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They say all good things must come to an end.
But if Sean Dyche’s pre-game thinking was rooted in realism, even he would never have imagined it.
For the first time since April 23, 2017, Liverpool were beaten at Anfield in the Premier League.
A 68-game streak was cut to ribbons by Ashley Barnes’ second half penalty and it’s Jurgen Klopp who is left to sweep the mess.
This is not the real story here, however.
The real tale revolves around how Barnes’ kick will hurt Liverpool’s hopes of retaining a Premier League title that seemed theirs to lose again a few weeks ago.
A four-game winless streak has just become a crisis in its own right.
And given how wonderful this Liverpool side have been for a while under Klopp, it is no exaggeration to suggest that they are as poor as they have been in years.
Suddenly they’re looking over their shoulders at Tottenham, West Ham, and most gallantly of all for Reds fans, Everton.
A plan has apparently been discovered by opposition leaders. Sit down, dig deep, and wait until the last quarter to move forward.
It worked for Sam Allardyce and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer before paying off spectacularly for some wacky Dyche here.
It really wasn’t meant to be that way.
After winning a first league title in 30 years in a record time of just 31 games the last time around, talk of dynasties has started to surface.
Klopp has been told to focus on building a Liverpool legacy for the 21st century by putting his foot on the necks of the rest of the competition.
What has happened since has not been without mitigation, as an injury-ravaged team negotiated the loss of some of their best players with aplomb through a match-crowded fall.
There can be no excuse here though.
It wasn’t due to a lack of a center half in the window or a lack of key men.
No, the reds have to admit that they were just a shadow of themselves. They have been for a month, because the wheels are slowly coming off.
Liverpool were once again without a bit of inventiveness as they continued to pepper Burnley’s box with high crosses that Ben Mee and James Tarkowski were content to dump all night long.
The Reds could play next week and they would still find Burnley’s stingy duo pushing back the hopefuls into the penalty area.
Vote for your man of the Liverpool game against Burnley HERE
Liverpool, still the Premier League’s top scorer, must be better than that?
While the news of Klopp’s squad came as a surprise Sunday against Manchester United, it surprised even more when it dropped at 7pm.
A forward three from Xherdan Shaqiri, Divock Origi and Sadio Mane was tasked with breaking Burnley’s big nut, with Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino reserved on the bench.
It was heartwarming to see the impressive Joel Matip return for his first appearance in nearly a month, even though the absence of captain Jordan Henderson is yet another kick to the lower regions on the injury front.
Without Henderson, Virgil van Dijk or James Milner in the squad, the captain’s duty fell to Gini Wijnaldum.
It’s a strange situation he finds himself in, knowing that he is still seen, by his manager, as an integral part of the squad, but without a new contract as he enters the final months of his contract.
After working unsuccessfully for almost 45 minutes in the first half, Liverpool finally got the luck they wanted when Mee’s poor control gave Origi the freedom of the pitch to run to goal.
The Belgian stabilized as he had a one-on-one with Nick Pope and arched a powerful shot against the underside of the crossbar.
What is your luck? Rotten, in fact.
The first half ended with a big brawl and VAR checking for a red card after Fabinho’s shot at Barnes.
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In line with what came before, nothing happened and the Brazilian would be free to return for the second half. He might have regretted not having disturbed.
Klopp ended the Origi and Oxlade-Chamberlain experiment early, as Salah and Firmino were introduced in their stead.
Salah immediately had a chance to break the deadlock but Pope was up to it after a superb run from Wijnaldum to create the chance.
As the game progressed, Liverpool looked more and more like a team who were keenly aware that they had gone over 400 minutes without a goal.
Mane took a chance and found row Z before Firmino’s lateral effort lacked conviction or precision in the penalty area.
Then came the decisive moment of the game.
Barnes beat Alisson and didn’t need any invite to come down. Referee Mike Dean pointed out the spot and the Clarets forward scored the goal that would give them their first win at Anfield since 1974.
So where does Liverpool go from here?
How does Klopp take his chins off the canvas and convince his players that there is still one title to keep?
This feat of alchemy will be made even more difficult by the fact that he is now close to 450 minutes without a goal from the runaway English champions last season.
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Right now, they look like everything but.
Liverpool may have to come to terms with the harsh reality that they are now only involved in a top-four fight.
Klopp said so after Sunday’s draw with United, but if it was a warning to his players it was a warning that fell on deaf ears desperately.
The Reds visit Spurs next in the league in what has become the biggest game of the season so far.
The most important answer is needed.
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