After taking on Preston North End this weekend, Liverpool now has a couple of weeks without a game. It will next play in Hong Kong against AC Milan, and then takes on Yokohama Marinos in Japan.
As of today, there is just over one month until the new Premier League season returns: 32 days. Liverpool is up first, of course, taking on Bournemouth at Anfield, while the rest of the teams in the top flight will kick off across the weekend that follows.
But already, in terms of preparation time, Liverpool is way ahead of most of its peers. The Reds finished the 2024/25 season on May 25 (though, really, it ended on April 27 against Spurs, when the league title was confirmed).
In contrast, Manchester City finished on July 1 when it was knocked out of the Club World Cup by Al Hilal. Chelsea ended last season a few hours after Liverpool's first pre-season friendly, beating PSG in the same tournament.
Alongside Arsenal, having a full summer should help Liverpool. Both sides should have a major advantage in terms of preparations for the new campaign — with both teams having done plenty of transfer business already.
Across Europe, Liverpool's main rivals for the Champions League have had a similarly hectic summer. Bayern Munich was eliminated from the Club World Cup by PSG on July 5. For Real Madrid, it was also the French giant, on July 9.
Liverpool boss Arne Slot still has plenty of questions to answer after the friendly win over Preston
Liverpool boss Arne Slot still has plenty of questions to answer after the friendly win over Preston (Image: Getty Images)
While it is not yet known what impact the Club World Cup will have on teams, Chelsea has gone all the way in the tournament. The prize money is a positive, but the extra minutes — in intense heat — certainly won't be.
Chelsea's players will have a very limited pre-season. Much more importantly, though, they will have almost no rest.
That might mean that the Stamford Bridge side goes into the start of the new season flying and in form and rhythm. But how might it look by Christmas?
Enzo Maresca has plenty of players to choose from and Chelsea is not short of rotation options, but it will have played games almost non-stop for two years by the end of the season. Last summer, there was a European Championship; next summer, there is a World Cup.
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It is a huge physical ask for Chelsea, in particular, to reach the level of Liverpool next season and then maintain that throughout. Others, like Manchester City, are also playing catch-up.
Pep Guardiola's men have had slightly more rest, but only by a couple of weeks. Its preparations for the new campaign have been disrupted just as much in terms of knowing how much rest to have and when to return.
Liverpool will be determined to retain its Premier League crown and go as far as possible in the Champions League next season. Though Chelsea has shown its strength in getting a surprisingly comfortable win over PSG, the real consequences are yet to emerge.