Liverpool's 2025: Best moment, worst signing, goal of the year - and will 2026 be better?

It's been a 2025 that brought the highest of highs and the lowest of lows for Liverpool, both on and off the pitch.

In a year that Liverpool lifted the Premier League title, they also endured their worst run of form since 1954 and struggle to bed in many of the signings from their £446m spending spree.

Here, ESPN looks back on a year unlike any other for Liverpool.

Best moment

There have been some magic moments for Liverpool in the past 12 months. It would be tough to argue that any eclipse the feeling on the pitch after the 5-1 win over Tottenham in April that meant they officially clinched the Premier League title.

It was a moment of great significance. It was their first trophy since the exit of Jürgen Klopp -- and in Arne Slot's first season -- but also their 20th top-flight league trophy, putting them back level with Manchester United.

What's more, fans got to see Liverpool win the title (and lift it the following month) after being forced to stay home and watch from afar when Klopp's side won it in 2020.

"This is the most beautiful club in the world. We deserve this... I was desperate to win it for [the fans] and all the fans around the world, and for us as well," Virgil van Dijk told Sky Sports after the game.

Remembering Diogo Jota

In the hours after Diogo Jota and his brother, André Silva, were tragically killed in a car crash, ESPN's Liverpool correspondent Beth Lindop wrote:

"Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has always possessed an uncanny ability to articulate the feelings of the club's fan base. He did so with remarkable regularity across his nine years as manager of the club, though his words have perhaps never resonated as profoundly as they did on Thursday, after Liverpool forward Diogo Jota, 28, and younger brother André Silva, 25, were killed in a car accident in northwest Spain.

"'This is a moment where I struggle,' Klopp wrote on social media. 'There must be a bigger purpose, but I can't see it.'

"It's a sentiment that has been shared by those associated with Liverpool and by the wider world."

Read full tribute here

Key signing

This really should have been harder to judge, but the answer is quite obvious.

Liverpool spent a record £446m in a summer transfer spree that saw add seven new signings, including Florian Wirtz (£100m) and Alexander Isak (£125m).

That said, so far their best signing has been Hugo Ekitiké (£79m).

The France international has enjoyed a prolific start to his Liverpool career, scoring eight goals in 16 Premier League appearances.

It's been up-and-down for Liverpool, but Ekitiké has been a mostly reliable constant.

Transfer to forget

Liverpool's mammoth transfer spree was rife to provide a flop. It is too early to consign anybody with that tag after just a few months, but there are some early contenders.

Florian Wirtz has been a particular disappointment in terms of his production -- he is yet to score for Liverpool and has registered just six assists in 22 games in all competitions.

Isak is yet to truly flourish in a Liverpool shirt, either, as he had to make up for his lack of preseason. He has just three goals in 16 games across all competitions.

Fans will have to wait to see if he can find his best form when he recovers from a leg injury he sustained while scoring against Tottenham.

There is also another option to be Liverpool's most regrettable signing so far.

Left-back Milos Kerkez has struggled early on in his career at Anfield -- his average WhoScored.com rating of 6.65, which is less than he achieved at Bournemouth last season.

A tactical tweak from Slot to allow Kerkez to give him more freedom to attack has led to improved performances in recent weeks, although his £40m transfer has yet to pay dividends.

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Goal of the year contenders

It's never easy to pick the goal of the year. What do you opt for? The outside-the-box belter -- paging Alexis Mac Allister -- or a strike that sparked last-minute bedlam?

Rather than crown a winner, here is a selection of the best Liverpool goals in 2025.

Alexis Mac Allister vs. Fulham, April 6

Alexis Mac Allister vs. Tottenham, April 27

Dominik Szoboszlai vs. Brighton, May 19

Federico Chiesa vs. Bournemouth, Aug. 15

Rio Ngumoha vs. Newcastle, Aug. 25

Will 2026 be better?

If the best moment of the season for Liverpool on the pitch came when they lifted the Premier League title, then their worst was their nightmare run that saw them lose nine of 12 games across all competitions -- their worst performance since 1954.

That run meant they dropped from the top of the table -- which they had previously clung to amid serveral late winners -- and by its end almost signalled an end to their hopes of the league title. It also meant they exited the Carabao Cup at the fourth round at the hands of Crystal Palace.

Still, there is reason for optimism.

Slot has proven that he can achieve success in English football, and there is still hope that summer arrivals Wirtz, Kerkez and Jeremie Frimpong can reach their full potential.

No matter the Premier League table, there is always the Champions League. Liverpool are no strangers to success in Europe -- their three runs to the final under Klopp are testament to that too -- but a run in Europe would change the outlook on their season, and it's not far-fetched to believe it could happen.