The Anfield outfit aren’t the only side looking to break a lengthy barren spell this season. Olly Ricketts looks at 10 European teams desperate to recreate past glories in 2014/15…
1) Grasshopper Club Zürich (Switzerland)
Grasshopper Club remain the most successful side in Swiss history, with 19 titles during the professional era. However, in the 11 years since they last won the championship, FC Basel have won eight, so if this proud club wishes to maintain its status they need to end the drought soon. Zürich did win a trophy (the Swiss Cup) for the first time in 10 years and finished as runners-up to Basel last season, so they appear to be a side on the up. They’ve suffered longer gaps between titles in the past – not winning the league between 1956 and 1971 the most notable – and it seems inconceivable that they won’t return to winning ways at some point.
2) Sporting Lisbon (Portugal)
The recent parallels between Sporting Lisbon and Liverpool are uncanny. After finishing an extremely disappointing seventh in 2013, the Portuguese club improved dramatically last season under a youthful manager (Leonardo Jardim) to finish runners-up to Benfica, just missing out on what would have been their 19th Primeira Liga title – and a first since 2002.
Although Sporting are firmly part of the Portuguese ‘Big Three’ along with Benfica and Porto (who have somewhat incredibly won 78 of 80 league titles between them), their success has actually been sporadic for some time, with only two titles won since 1982. Jardim has departed for AS Monaco in the summer, and been replaced with Estoril’s Marco Silva as they look to go one better this season.
3) Feyenoord (Holland)
Since the legendary Leo Beenhakker led Feyenoord to their 14th (and last) Eredivisie title in 1999, the club has been through arguably the most tumultuous period of its illustrious history. Serious financial problems led to star names being sold and replaced with markedly inferior and cheaper players.
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