For the first time in 2023/24, Liverpool saw the door close on a route toward silverware on Sunday afternoon, having succumbed to late pressure against Manchester United in the FA Cup.
The Reds had scored twice late in the opening half to turn the game on its head, with Scott McTominay opening the scoring after ten minutes, but wastefulness and complacency after the break ruined dominance that deserved a goal, and Jurgen Klopp is now competing across two fronts in the final phase of his Liverpool tenure.
Of course, Liverpool have already won the Carabao Cup this season, are behind first-placed Premier League side Arsenal only on goal difference and are the favourites to win the Europa League, having drawn Atalanta from Serie A in the quarter-finals.
But defeat in the FA Cup stings, with the manner of the loss sure to rankle the Merseysiders. Substitute Antony, widely criticised for his performances since joining Manchester United from Ajax for £86m in 2022, pivoted with grace and poise in the late stage of normal time to send a precise shot past Caoimhin Kelleher, outstretched but outfoxed.
And while Harvey Elliott's fine run of form continued as he regained the lead with a thumping deflected effort in extra time, Marcus Rashford and Amad Diallo netted late on to send the Theatre of Dreams into a frenzy.
Why Liverpool lost vs Man Utd
Setbacks are part and parcel and it was wishful thinking to expect Liverpool to fire on all cylinders for the remainder of the campaign, but Klopp's side deserve all the plaudits for battling through a spate of injuries over the past several months to win silverware and have a platform for further success.
Ibrahima Konate, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Curtis Jones, Diogo Jota, Alisson Becker, Stefan Bajcetic, Thiago Alcantara and Joel Matip made up a bloated injury list that should have precluded the stunning recent results that have kept the club afloat.
Now, with the dreaded international break arriving, Liverpool are blessed with an opportune moment to recalibrate and nurture some sidelined stars closer back to fitness.
Moreover, the fatigue and wear-and-tear of the gruelling campaign – 2024 really has been relentless – can pause, take the much-needed breather, and Liverpool can return to action with a new lick of paint and an overlay of polish to tackle the business end.
All this said Liverpool were guilty of some inexcusable errors and while they found their rhythm during a blistering second-half period, it was not sustained and Manchester United were given in-roads all too often.
But it was Antony's goal that proved damning. It was the extra 30 minutes of play that proved detrimental for Klopp's side. Sapped and soft after a thick-and-fast run of fixtures, the Anfield side lacked the right substitution in the closing stage.
It's a shame Bajcetic is not quite ready to return from the injuries that have limited him to just two appearances this term; the precocious Spaniard would have made all the difference for Liverpool.
Why Stefan Bajcetic is so highly rated
Liverpool secured Bajcetic's services from Celta Vigo for just £224,000 back in December 2020, when he was 16 years old, with Alex Otero, youth coordinator at Celta Vigo, gushing to The Athletic about his prodigious qualities.
He said: “He has amazing physical characteristics. He is extremely quick, makes good recoveries, has a great spring, is really impressive in the air and carries the ball cleanly out of defence.”
After spending a few years growing into his skin within Liverpool's burgeoning youth system, Bajcetic was called to the senior set-up in 2022 and made his professional debut during Liverpool's 9-0 thrashing of Bournemouth in the Premier League.
A few months later, with the Redmen struggling for form, his youthful traits were demanded and he caught the eye amid toiling peers, completing 11 appearances in the top flight before cruelly seeing his campaign ended by an abductor injury.
Liverpool reporter Leanne Prescott is among those to have marvelled at the teenage talent's emergence, with the writer saying: "Staggering that Liverpool look most in control this season when 18-year-old Stefan Bajcetic is playing."
1.
Michael Owen
Wimbledon
17y 143d
2.
Raheem Sterling
Reading
17y 317d
3.
Stefan Bajcetic
Aston Villa
18y 65d
4.
Robbie Fowler
Oldham Athletic
18y 190d
5.
Jamie Carragher
Aston Villa
18y 356d
He scored on just his second feature in the Premier League to ice a much-needed victory over Aston Villa, going on to impress with his seamless style on the ball and intelligence across the many facets of the midfield game.
Klopp declared Bajcetic an "exceptional" young player after he burst onto the scene and he clearly has the tools to fashion success on the Anfield pitch for many years to come, if his age-belying feats from last year are anything to go by.
Nimble and adroit, tenacious in his defensive duties and endowed with energy and athleticism that acts as a natural vitaliser for his teammates, Bajcetic is the real deal and he could have offered the spark needed to secure success against Manchester United.
Imagine if Stefan Bajcetic played vs Man Utd
It's not that Liverpool were… poor against the Red Devils, rather, the team that took control failed to keep a hold of the reins after flagging as the match dragged on.
As discussed, this is only natural after such an unrelenting few months of football but Bajcetic's introduction to the engine room would have been enough to secure a spot in the semi-finals – against Coventry City, with the draw pitting Erik ten Hag's side against Championship opposition.
The 19-year-old has been confirmed to have returned to training this month but is still a little distance away from gracing the field, with Klopp hopeful that he will join first-team training after the imminent international break.
Had he returned just that little bit earlier, he might have made all the difference; despite playing just 11 minutes against Leicester City in the Carabao Cup earlier in the campaign, Bajcetic won all three duels, made two tackles and an interception and created a key pass.
In his other display, against LASK in the Europa League group stage, Bajcetic played from the outset and completed 84% of his passes, won three of his six ground duels, created two key passes, succeeded with his one attempted dribble and seven of his nine sprayed long passes.
He is such a robust player and would have injected the life and electricity Liverpool needed to cross the finish line. He did it last season, he will do it again.
Bajcetic's return cannot come soon enough for Klopp's side.
