3 Liverpool Players Whose Stock Tumbled in the 2015/16 Premier League Season

The 2015/16 Premier League campaign was a major disappointment for Liverpool, kicking off with a stuttering start under Brendan Rodgers and, following a brief revival, ending in a marginal role as Jurgen Klopp looked to navigate a busy fixture list, with the UEFA Europa League taking priority.

Last Sunday's 1-1 draw away to West Bromwich Albion confirmed an eighth-placed finish for the Reds in the league, their joint-worst placing since the 1954/55 season, and their second-worst points tally (60) in the last five years.

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Defeat to Sevilla in Wednesday's Europa League final ensured that Liverpool will be without European competition in 2016/17, and while supporters were left frustrated at FC Basel's St. Jakob-Park, there was little ill-feeling towards their manager, with Klopp building for long-term success on Merseyside.

However, throughout the league campaign, a handful of his players experienced a drop in value, both in terms of their performances and their popularity among supporters—and with changes to come this summer, many could be on their way out of the Anfield exit before the next campaign.

Here are three players whose stock tumbled during the 2015/16 Premier League, starting with an under-fire centre-back.

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Martin Skrtel

Slovak defender Martin Skrtel began the season in a prominent position under Rodgers, keeping his role as Liverpool's first-choice centre-back alongside Dejan Lovren—with Mamadou Sakho, prior to his suspension following a positive drug test, left on the substitutes' bench.

After months of deliberation regarding his future, with sides from Serie A chasing his signature, Skrtel signed a new three-year contract in July, keeping him at the club beyond his 33rd birthday.

The former Zenit St Petersburg defender was even mooted by the Liverpool Echo's Kristian Walsh as a potential candidate to assume the role of vice-captaincy, following Steven Gerrard's departure as skipper and Jordan Henderson's promotion.

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James Milner eventually filled the position, but Skrtel continued in his key role for much of the campaign, starting in each of the Reds' first 17 league games, before a hamstring injury in December's 3-0 loss to Watford derailed his progress.

That injury kept Skrtel out for nine league games, while Lovren and Sakho established themselves as Klopp's first-choice centre-back pairing in his absence.

Compounding this increasingly peripheral role was a shocking 45-minute display as the Reds let a two-goal lead slip after half-time in March's 3-2 defeat away to Southampton, with Skrtel's introduction at the interval unavoidably linked with his side's capitulation.

The 31-year-old made just four league starts following his return to fitness at the beginning of March, largely coming as Klopp rotated to keep his key players fresh for the Europa League, with Kolo Toure moving ahead in the pecking order in defence.

An emotional Skrtel waved goodbye to supporters at the Hawthorns last weekend, as he is likely to leave the club this summer after a miserable season under Klopp—few would argue against this decision.

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Jordan Henderson

While Skrtel avoided the poisoned chalice that was a post-Gerrard captaincy, Henderson's move up into the role as Liverpool's figurehead, and leader on and off the field, has seen the former Sunderland midfielder struggle for consistency throughout 2015/16.

This was combined with a number of crippling injury issues throughout the campaign, with Henderson suffering from a broken foot and a torn knee ligament, ensuring he made just 15 starts for the Reds in the league.

He was also substituted on twice, including last Sunday's 1-1 draw with West Brom, but the captain missed out on an appearance against Sevilla in the Europa League final—perhaps underlining his position under Klopp.

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For his performances throughout 2014/15, picking up the slack as Gerrard floundered, Henderson was considered a key player within Rodgers' midfield, but due to his injuries, that duty now falls to Emre Can.

Can has been partnered with Milner for much of the latter half of 2015/16, with supporters in no rush to call Henderson back from injury—as the Liverpool Echo's Ian Doyle discussed following the draw with West Brom.

"It's symptomatic of Henderson's Anfield career that there is an overall acceptance the knee injury suffered in Dortmund last month will put paid to his chances of appearing, at least from the start, in Switzerland," Doyle wrote, before concluding that the midfielder didn't enjoy the "cult following" of some of his team-mates.

Scoring just two goals and laying on three assists in 17 league games is a poor return for a creative midfielder, particularly with Milner scoring five and assisting 11 in 28 appearances, and though Henderson's long-term role should not be under threat, his stock has certainly fallen in the eyes of Liverpool supporters.

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Jordon Ibe

When Raheem Sterling made the £49 million move to Manchester City last summer, his young colleague Jordon Ibe was held up as the ideal replacement, with Jack Bezants of MailOnline recalling in November that "a new winger was not brought to Anfield due to the club's belief in [Ibe's] abilities."

Ibe had made 12 Premier League appearances for the Reds in the second half of 2014/15, having been recalled from a successful loan spell with Derby County, and was set for an increased role in 2015/16, after signing a new long-term contract in April.

The winger even gave up his summer holiday to join Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish and academy director Alex Inglethorpe at the club’s Kirkby academy in order to heighten his chances of a first-team role.

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"This is driven by Jordon," Inglethorpe told the Liverpool Echo's Andy Kelly in June, "He's the one who wanted to come in and do a bit more. He’s the one who wanted to work on a few things."

If this was a young player intent on improving and securing a regular role at a club with European aspirations, Ibe's drop down the pecking order under Klopp serves as a reminder of the harsh pitfalls of development.

After featuring in 19 of the Reds' first 23 league games in 2015/16, Ibe made just eight appearances in their last 15, and like Skrtel, these largely came as Klopp fielded a much-changed side against the likes of Bournemouth, Swansea City, Watford and West Brom.

Ibe signed off the season with an excellent solo goal in the draw with the Baggies, hinting at his potential for the long term. But with Watford linked with a move for the 20-year-old this summer, per the Guardian's Andy Hunter, and Sheyi Ojo moving ahead of him in Klopp's thinking, it may just have come too late.

Statistics via Transfermarkt.co.uk.

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