Ian Darke: In the wake of tragedy, can Liverpool win a second straight Premier League title?

A huge cloud hangs over Anfield, and the title win for Liverpool has for now been forgotten. There is only the pain of losing a beloved player in Diogo Jota in such horrific circumstances.

His No. 20 shirt is being retired across all teams and levels inside the club, and his teammates will find it hard to cope when they look around the dressing room to see his old locker empty. He was a newlywed father of three lovely children. His death and that of his brother, André Silva, is an unspeakable tragedy felt throughout the entire community, even among those of us who only described his many goals in the media. Yet somehow, Liverpool do have to soldier on and prepare for a new season, with no one sure how the trauma of losing such a good and popular player will affect them. In time, you can imagine that a feeling of “Let’s win this title again for Diogo” might grow in the Anfield dressing room.

It will not be easy for the new arrivals to start their Liverpool careers in this atmosphere, but they are significant additions, as coach Arne Slot’s winning pack from last year has been shuffled. Can the Reds retain their crown?

Liverpool have already spent more than £300 million in the summer window, and there might be more transfers to come. Getting no encouragement in a polite inquiry about Newcastle’s superb striker Alexander Isak, the Reds are spending around £80 million to sign Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike, who looks lithe, quick and lethal with both feet. He is only 23 and probably still improving. He scored 22 goals last season, and the fee partly reflects his clear potential for the next decade. Clearly, Slot wanted a new No. 9, so Darwin Núñez will be moved out if the right offer comes along.

– Will Ekitike be a hit or flop? Why he’s so hard to scout
– How Ekitike ended up at Liverpool, and what Reds are getting
– Summer transfer grades: All major deals rated

Also arriving at Anfield are the brilliant young German playmaker Florian Wirtz, his ex-Bayer Leverkusen teammate Jeremie Frimpong, and the swift Hungarian left back Milos Kerkez from Bournemouth. There might be more to come, with the Reds reportedly chasing Crystal Palace defender and England international Marc Guéhi, though a move for the outstanding young Ajax teenager Jorrel Hato is unlikely given that Chelsea have entered into transfer talks there.

Do these new signings make an already strong Liverpool side even stronger? How do the new players fit in? Who might lose their place? And how much will they miss Trent Alexander-Arnold now that he’s taken his laser-guided passing to Real Madrid?

Wirtz, 22, has looked the complete package with his invention, dribbling ability and eye for goal. Last season, he scored 10 goals and had 14 assists in the Bundesliga and notched six goals in nine UEFA Champions League appearances. Add to that an ego-free approach, and you imagine him fitting in well at Anfield — though there might be a settling-in period as he adapts to the rhythms of the Premier League. Conventional thinking is that Wirtz will be used as a No. 10 in Slot’s 4-2-3-1 formation. That would threaten the place of Dominik Szoboszlai, who would scarcely deserve the demotion after his all-action contributions for much of last season.

Intriguingly, there is a way for Slot to keep Szoboszlai in the team by using Wirtz as a floating No. 9, much in the manner that Liverpool once used Roberto Firmino. Paris Saint-Germain use Ousmane Dembélé in a similar fashion with great success — so much so that the France forward is arguably the front-runner for this year’s Ballon d’Or. In this scenario, the versatile Wirtz would be scoring or creating chances with Mohamed Salah, Luis Díaz, Cody Gakpo or Szoboszlai on either side of Wirtz in a fluid front four. However, the signing of Ekitike suggests any experimentation with Wirtz would be a backup option, with the German more often deployed as a No. 10.

Last season, Liverpool were top scorers in the league with 86 goals, and Wirtz will likely add to that potency. Harvey Elliott, torchbearer in England’s Euro U21 triumph with five goals, could go soon to West Ham or Brighton, but will be looking for more first-team action if he remains at Anfield. In the midfield, it’s hard to imagine that Slot would deviate much from his established duo of Ryan Gravenberch, a revelation in the No. 6 role last season, and Alexis Mac Allister, with Wataru Endo providing cover.

Liverpool’s defense is more of a talking point especially in the fullback positions, where Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson have been a constant threat for several seasons. Alexander-Arnold has gone while Robertson, who lost form last season at times, turned 31 in March. It looks like Frimpong will be Slot’s starting right back, though he often featured as more of a right winger in a fine career as a Leverkusen “Invincible,” so it is possible that the more defensively minded Conor Bradley might be preferred for some tough away assignments. On the left side, Kerkez was outstanding for Bournemouth, but needs to prove he can cut it in a more demanding environment with higher expectations. The Hungarian is adventurous in attack, but Slot will need him to be equally adept as a defender.

Having two offensively minded fullbacks heaps plenty of work on center backs Ibrahima Konaté and Virgil van Dijk when the opposition counterattacks. Liverpool look a little thin in this area, with Jarell Quansah leaving for Leverkusen and Joe Gomez being injury-prone. Hence the pursuit of Crystal Palace’s Guehi and, previously, Hato, who’s been in Ajax’s team since he was 16 and has already made 29 European appearances.

Behind that defense, Alisson remains one of the world’s top keepers, and Giorgi Mamardashvili of Georgia looks an able deputy. Remember his heroics at last year’s Euros? All in all, Liverpool are well equipped to mount a very strong defense of a title.

What about the other contenders? Viktor Gyökeres will give Arsenal, who finished 10 points behind Liverpool in second, the out-and-out scoring No. 9 they need — once they conclude this long-overdue transfer saga — and Noni Madueke can be dangerous from either wing. The pair will provide more attacking threat for a team that had the best defense last season.

Manchester City, despite their shocking exit at the hands of Al Hilal at the Club World Cup, will surely bounce back after last season’s fall from grace. Rodri’s return in midfield is crucial, and a stagnating squad has been refreshed with Tijjani Reijnders, Rayan Aït-Nouri and Rayan Cherki. More additions could follow.

Chelsea, with the dangerous Cole Palmer and with Moisés Caicedo now a big presence in central midfield, could get involved at the top as their youngsters mature and jell into a more consistent unit.

It’s hard to see any other clubs being in genuine title contention, and though predictions are risky before the summer business is complete, Liverpool are rightly favorites to retain their crown, a feat they have not achieved since reeling off three in a row in the early 1980s.

But whatever happens, it pales in significance compared with the loss of two brothers way before their time. The name of Diogo Jota is enshrined in Anfield folklore. He will never be forgotten, and will be remembered with great affection by all who played alongside him.