Liverpool may have found an extra edge to overcome their big spending rivals... it's not a transfer 📈
Transfers get all the coverage but we shouldn't ignore the marginal gains being worked on behind the scenes to improve the squad.
When pre-season has come and gone, will it be remembered for the “close to perfect” sessions or the marginal gains Jurgen Klopp and his coaching team helped cultivate to hand Liverpool an extra edge next term?
Alas, the answer is obvious: no.
Transfers as ever dominate proceedings and not without good reason, as the club does have a couple of gaps in need of addressing in the window.
The vacancy left by Georginio Wijnaldum’s departure, in particular, has been covered ceaselessly throughout the summer.
Make no mistake, as far as we here at EOTK Insider are concerned, a replacement is absolutely necessary.
That having been said, we feel it would do a disservice to the hard work Klopp and the Liverpool squad have been involved in over pre-season if we failed to highlight how else the club is seeking to gain an advantage over its rivals this coming campaign.
In a world where the likes of Manchester City and PSG can burn through millions of pounds as if it were nothing but back pocket change, marginal gains will be critical.
One such advantage Liverpool have looked to enhance ahead of the 2021/22 season is the players’ mental fortitude in set-piece situations and beyond.
The Athletic pointed to the work of Dr. Niklas Hausler and Patrick Hantschke of Neuro11, an organisation devoted to helping athletes hold on to their moments of perfect mental clarity - that elusive zone where everything one touches turns to gold.
According to Neuro11’s website, “Being ‘in flow’ is a subconscious state of mind that you're already familiar with.
“Your focus is razor-sharp, actions feel automatic, and we know that you also shoot more accurately.
“This mental state is not easy to reach. At neuro11, our aim is for you to reach it at will.
“As neuroscientific researchers, we know how to measure and to train flow.
“With our unique neuro11 brain training™, you will recognize when you're in-flow and when you're not.
“Learn to eliminate distractions, making that clutch play truly an act of child's play.”
Just think about the forward line alone.
Imagine if the likes of Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota, Sadio Mane, Bobby Firmino and co. could just summon their ‘on fire’ moments at will.
Of course, we doubt we’ll see this kind of work manifest in a notably monstrous season of epic proportions for our attacking talents.
Though, if it’s enough to see the odd dead ball or wayward shot find its intended target, handing Liverpool an extra handful of points here and there, it could be the difference-maker come the end of the campaign.
As much as we’d love to see Klopp able to point at whatever player his heart desires and be backed with a spare £100m lying about in the warchest, the reality is that we lack the finances to outmuscle clubs like Manchester City in the market.
That’s not necessarily an issue, of course, given how strong our first-choice XI is.
This means that, beyond some good fortune with injuries, it will be the marginal gains granted by collaborating with organisations like Neuro11 (which tend to go under the radar) that could grant us the necessary edge to overcome our big spending rivals.
There will be those at scoff at the significance of such contributions, as was the case with the signing of throw-in coach Thomas Grønnemark.
Ultimately, however, these little advantages do end up all adding up, and they’ll be difficult to ignore if Liverpool manage to finish the season with a trophy to show for their efforts.
If you’re of fan of this kind of content, all completely ad-free, then feel free to hit the subscribe button below and become an EOTK Insider. Dig into exclusive tidbits reserved only for our subscribers!