4. Liverpool (post- Benitez era)
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Liverpool weren’t exactly having the best of times during the 1990s. They failed to replicate their legacy they had created under Bill Shanley and Kenny Dalglish over the earlier years. The most they could do was win a cup treble in 2001 under Gerard Houllier that included the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup.
The Frenchman was replaced by Rafael Benitez who brought Liverpool back on the map in European football. In his first season in charge, Liverpool won the 2004-05 Champions League after scripting one of the most memorable comebacks in football history against Italian giants AC Milan in the final.
He further guided Liverpool to an FA Cup win in 2006 and another Champions League Final in the 2006-07 Champions League which The Reds lose to their 2004-05 final opponents AC Milan. Under the Spaniard, Liverpool had their best ever Premier League finish since its inception as they ended runners-up to Manchester United with 86 points. Benitez left at the end of the 2009-10 season and this marked the beginning of a drastic downfall for The Reds.
Under Roy Hodgson and later Kenny Dalglish, they ended the 2010-11 season in 6th position after being in the relegation zone for some time; something which would later lead to Hodgson resigning.
The 2011-12 season saw the return of Kenny Dalglish but he failed to live to people’s expectations as they slumped to their worst ending in the League since 1994 as they ended eighth. Victory in the League Cup and an FA Cup couldn’t prevent Kenny Dalglish from getting the sack and he was replaced by Brendan Rodgers.
Rodgers was in charge of the club for nearly three-and-a-half seasons before being dismissed in 2015. Under him, Liverpool came very close to winning the League in the 2013-14 season before spilling the beans in their last couple of games to finish second.
Rodgers’ replacement Jurgen Klopp has so far been good in resurging Liverpool and thanks to his guidance, Liverpool made the final of the Europa League despite of a disappointing league finish. However, it is still a very long way to go in order to replicate the form they had during Benitez’s time at the helm.
