Liverpool quadruple bid: How the Reds are closer than any other English club to historic haul

We are all wondering if they will win one, two, three, or all four trophies this season.

An unprecedented quadruple is no longer an impossibility with less than a month left. Even with only the Carabao Cup secured so far, the Reds can already claim they are closer to it than any English side has done before.

Many have tried. Since 1960, there have been 120 attempts by 15 clubs to win the FA Cup and League Cup in the same season.

There have been three different trebles from those teams. No side has gotten this far into the season with their hopes still alive for a clean sweep.

The bid will last at least this long. If they beat Villarreal in the second leg of the European semifinals on 3 May, they will have a chance to play in the FA Cup final on 14 May.

There is a glaring omission in the table. The 1998-99 trophy haul of Manchester United is seen as the greatest trophy haul by an English team of any era.

The League Cup exit to Spurs in the quarter-finals in 1998 prevented Sir Alex Ferguson's side from getting a quadruple within six months.

That meant no one was talking about a clean sweep at Old Trafford by Christmas that year. United still had plenty to celebrate, like Manchester City in 2019.

The United team that came closest to all four trophies was the one that won the League Cup in 2009.

They made it to within three wins of a quadruple, but lost to Barcelona in the final of the European Championship and toEverton in the FA Cup last four.

The only trophy in the bag is the one held by the Reds.

This is the 24th attempt at a quadruple by the Reds, the most by United, who were denied an attempt in 1999-2000 when they did not take part in the FA Cup.

They won one trophy in seven of those seasons, did a double of some kind in four more, and managed one treble of the league title, European Cup and League Cup in 1984, but they had never even reached March with a chance of all four.

The 2000-01 treble is a notable achievement, but does not count as a quadruple attempt because they were not in the playoffs that season. The Uefa Cup, FA Cup and League Cup were all won by the Reds.

The amount of silverware that the Reds eventually collect will affect how they are remembered. They didn't know how long they had a chance of winning everything or how many games they would lose.

Ask about that.

Until this week, the 2007 side had been in contention for the quadruple for more than any other English club.

It was only 15 years ago, but it has already been forgotten by many. It is a timely warning of how quickly the quest could end.

The 'forgotten' quadruple bid - when Chelsea's dreams were dashed

Excitement is building at Anfield and far beyond with every victory by the team, who were told last week they would become mortal if they can achieve the feat.

In 2007, when they became the first English side to make it into May with the League Cup in the bag, there was no fanfare for them.

The situation then was very similar to the one now. The Blues were three points behind Manchester United with four league games to go. They were already through to the FA Cup final and had just won the first leg of their European semi-final.

The backdrop to their bid was different. At that time, the newspaper reports about the club mentioned their four chances. The media was mostly speculating about whether he would keep his job beyond the end of the season, instead of celebrating his achievements and wondering how much his team could win.

Rather than being asked about a clean sweep, which he thought was possible right until the end, he was being asked about his own future.

The unrest behind the scenes didn't help him, and it was slightly different then to sign a new contract.

The title challenge foundered in the next set of games. Eventual champions United recovered from being 2-0 down with 30 minutes left to beat Everton 4-2 and open up a five-point lead with three games to play, after they could only draw 2-2 with Bolton the same day.

After a 2-2 draw in the second leg of the semi-finals of the European Championship, they were eliminated from the competition.

What could happen this season?

It was only after winning the FA Cup a couple of weeks later that he would have the chance to complete a domestic cup double, but those stories that he was on the verge of leaving were correct.

He went out with a bang.

In English football, multiple successes in that manner were rare until the late 1990s, when the expansion of the Champions League offered more opportunities for a quadruple.

The silverware could still be shared. Only Manchester United can be sure that the keys to their trophy cabinet won't be needed this month.

Manchester City are not just trying to deny a clean sweep, they are chasing their own double of the European and English League titles. The FA Cup will be on the line when the Blues meet the Reds on 14 April.

It is possible that City and Chelsea could still end up with more to show for their season than the other teams.

Who has tried before? When Burnley went close

The first season four trophies were up for grabs in England in 1960-61, but it was not until March that the first quarter-finals of the European Cup were played.

The European Cup was limited to the league champion or holders and the clubs who qualified did not enter the League Cup.

Between 1985 and 1991 there was no chance of completing it, as English clubs were barred from Europe for five years.

Since then, some great teams of the modern era have had a go at winning all four trophies, but have fallen short.

The City side that broke the 100 point mark and set an all-time English top-flight record for most points in a single campaign in 2017-18 had their bid ended by Wigan Athletic.

In 2003-04, the only silverware that was won by the team was the league title, but they lost the League Cup semi- final to Middlesbrough on February 3rd.

Is it mortal or mere mortals? We are about to find out.

The bid will last at least this long.