It's one thing to inherit a very good squad and another thing is managing them properly, if Slot wasn't a good manager he wouldn't have won the league with that squad so let's not give Klopp all the praises and forget to acknowledge Arne Slots good effort last season, some coach would had finished in a good spot even with that squad Klopp left for him.
Also, Arne Slots success last season wasn't dependent on City's decline, Liverpool kept a very good record in the league last season while Manchester City were drawing and throwing away points, Liverpool were winning their matches and adding to their points, they top the runners up Arsenal with about 10 points.
No one knows how things would have turned out if City had continued to dominate in the English Premier League. If they hadn’t had any kind of crisis, Liverpool might have played differently too. It’s one thing to compete when you have a worthy opponent and you're going toe to toe with them, and a completely different thing to dominate without feeling any competition from other teams. In that case, you play much more easily, without pressure.
I hope City will show their former strong form this season, and then we’ll be able to see how good Liverpool really are. But Liverpool have undergone many changes, both in attack and in defense, and I think that could affect the team. So I believe this season will be more difficult for them either way.