Liverpool top-five failure ‘could cost £ 120 m’

Thursday, 5 March 2026 02:16 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Mohamed Salah was back on the scoresheet at Wolves, but the home side found a stoppage-time winner

“The stakes are very high,” Liverpool Captain Virgil van Dijk said after Tuesday’s surprise 2-1 Premier League defeat to Wolves.

The loss at Molineux left Liverpool in fifth place, which is almost certain to be enough to qualify for the Champions League.

But the table is tight. The Reds have only a three-point cushion over Chelsea, who face fourth-placed Aston Villa for their game in hand on Wednesday.

“Either we get it and we deserve it or we don’t get it and we don’t deserve it,” Van Dijk said. “If you play for Liverpool, it’s always been like this. It’s down to us, together with our fans, to get the results we need to get into the Champions League.”

Beyond the sporting implications, there are huge finances at stake.

Failure to qualify for the Champions League could be worth as much as £ 120 million, according to football finance expert Kieran Maguire, who also said the Reds were better placed to weather such a drop because they are well run.