It’s 76 days since Liverpool moved again to the highest of the 2024-25 Premier League desk with a 2-1 residence win in opposition to Brighton & Hove Albion — a place they haven’t relinquished since.
Arne Slot’s aspect should not all the time exhibiting imperious kind however have nonetheless solely been crushed as soon as of their 20 league matches to this point and have a four-point benefit over second-placed Arsenal, with a recreation in hand, going into the weekend’s fixtures.
So, are Liverpool destined to win simply their second home championship in 35 years? And, if they’re, at what level within the coming months will that triumph grow to be all however nailed-on? We convened an skilled panel — some with affiliations to the Anfield aspect, others to Liverpool’s greatest rivals — and sought their views.
Pep Guardiola has fried all of our brains.
He’s shattered a variety of English soccer’s illusions about its exceptionalism throughout his 9 years as Manchester Metropolis supervisor. He’s affected the way in which just about each crew within the nation play. He’s modified what all of us anticipate our full-backs to do. And our central defenders.
Extra instantly, he’s altered what all of us suppose a title race appears like.
For the previous few years – with one exception – the usual for anybody hoping to win the Premier League has been, as Jurgen Klopp as soon as put it, perfection. Even to be near that meant getting greater than 90 factors from the obtainable 114. Truly claiming the crown often required extra: 93, or 98, or 100.
This season is completely different. A complete of 85 will in all probability do it, perhaps even 82. Which means our reactions to particular person outcomes are out of kilter: in a marketing campaign when Metropolis do nothing however win, drawing as soon as at residence may be deadly; in a single the place there’s extra leeway for his or her rivals, the injury is proscribed.
Liverpool’s present league place, after all, makes them favourites, even when that recreation they’ve in hand is the final league derby at Goodison Park — hardly a gimme. However there’s little to counsel the four-point benefit Arne Slot’s crew presently maintain over Arsenal is prone to be decisive. This isn’t the type of season the place a lead, as soon as obtained, is not going to be surrendered.
Arne Slot has made an outstanding begin to life in English soccer (Paul Ellis/AFP through Getty Pictures)
Liverpool’s schedule, from right here on in, is tougher than Arsenal’s; it’s not unimaginable that they could draw three extra video games than Mikel Arteta’s aspect over the following 4 months.
Arsenal should not have an enormous margin for error however I’d solely be comparatively assured that the twists and turns had ended if Liverpool got here out of their recreation in opposition to them at Anfield, on the second weekend in Could, with a three-point lead. And a superior objective distinction, simply to be secure.
Rory Smith
Name it a hard-bitten Evertonian self-defence mechanism, however I stay with a continual situation which presents as a persistent, underlying premonition of main Liverpool success. For instance: they might be 18th within the 20-team Premier League desk, managerless and riddled with accidents, and my nervous system could be getting ready for an unlikely cup win and surge to a top-four end.
So I’ve been tingling with the sensation that the 2024-25 title is coming to Anfield ever since they beat Actual Madrid (within the Champions League) and Manchester Metropolis back-to-back within the house of 5 days as November turned December.
A small a part of me nonetheless simply can’t rule out some astonishing Metropolis revival the place they win each recreation between now and the tip of the marketing campaign in late Could, as Liverpool drop factors attributable to lingering defensive points. Or that Arsenal will signal a good goalscorer earlier than this winter switch window closes in a few weeks and actually make it a contest.
However it might nonetheless be infinitely extra possible that Liverpool will discover one other gear and triumph comfortably.
Because it stands, I feel it should solely be after they’ve come by means of successive video games in opposition to Chelsea and Arsenal in early Could that I’ll utterly make my peace with the forthcoming months of countless protection, parades, performs, poems, movies, statues and royal decrees that can accompany their record-equalling twentieth top-flight championship.
Greg O’Keeffe
GO DEEPER
Do Liverpool want new signings?
Should you’re a fan of a rival membership — Manchester United, say — there’s usually some extent in a season the place it’s a must to make peace with the concept the “Unhealthy Factor” would possibly occur, and also you begin steeling your self for when pals within the group chat/at five-a-side begin gloating extra.
For me, that arrived after Liverpool’s trio of fixtures in opposition to Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester Metropolis and West Ham United both aspect of Christmas. It wasn’t simply that Liverpool had been good. It wasn’t simply that Manchester Metropolis and Arsenal had been wobbling. It’s that Arne Slot discovered sufficient tactical options for the issues the Premier League throws at you.
Left-back is a matter for this crew, Darwin Nunez’s tempo doesn’t fairly compensate for the pace of his decision-making, Alisson will not be fairly the pressure he was in objective. Alexis Mac Allister – understandably – can look just a little leggy when he returns from long-haul worldwide obligation in South America with Argentina. But Slot retains tinkering and tweaking whereas reminding his gamers at half-time that onerous working will not be an elective requirement to successful video games.
Alisson – a effective goalkeeper, however is he in decline? (Justin Setterfield/Getty Pictures)
Liverpool’s 2019-20 title triumph noticed a Jurgen Klopp-managed aspect beat Leicester Metropolis 4-0 away on December 26 (it might need been Naby Keita’s final good recreation for the membership) and stamp their authority on the remainder of the league. This season’s 3-1 win over them at Anfield on that date wasn’t fairly the identical (if solely as a result of Leicester had been quite a bit stronger 5 years in the past), however there’s a related sense that when Slot’s aspect swap it on, no one in England can compete.
Carl Anka
In 2019-20, there have been two video games round this level within the season that made Jurgen Klopp’s aspect successful the title really feel like an inevitability: the 4-0 away victory in opposition to Leicester Metropolis on Boxing Day and beating Manchester United 2-0 at Anfield on January 19. The latter was their twenty first league win from the season’s first 22 matches. Absurd.
I haven’t skilled that feeling but this season. It’s a humorous time to pose this query as a result of present wobble Arne Slot’s crew is having. Had I been requested this query after the victories over Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester and West Ham United earlier than and after Christmas, I’d be extra constructive. However two attracts since to make it three wins in seven league video games doesn’t scream title-winning kind, though they haven’t misplaced any of these matches.
As a pessimist in terms of one of these factor, my practical reply is: solely when it’s mathematically unattainable for them to be caught, or Virgil van Dijk is definitely lifting the trophy.
Nevertheless, I’d love that 2019-20-esque second to come back in a Merseyside derby – ideally the following one, at Goodison Park on February 12, however extra possible when Everton go to Anfield within the first week of April. These video games are so essential to momentum, constructive or unfavorable.
Failing that, a constructive outcome at residence in opposition to Arsenal on the weekend of Could 10-11 will in all probability be the important thing second the place I’ll imagine it’s occurring.
Andy Jones
Over Liverpool’s final seven Premier League matches, they’ve dropped factors in 4. That doesn’t look or sound to me like an unstoppable procession to the title. They’re the favourites to win it from right here, certain — however I’m not but satisfied.
The difficulty, after all, is that their most believable challengers, Arsenal, have an identical propensity to drop factors — and a major hole to overtake. They’re additionally with out arguably their finest participant for some time but with Bukayo Saka having lately undergone surgical procedure for a torn hamstring — and that blow to their assault has been compounded by an ACL knee damage for Gabriel Jesus final weekend.
A lot might rely on how a lot, if in any respect, Arsenal strengthen earlier than the winter switch window closes on February 3.
I really feel that Liverpool and Arsenal — and Nottingham Forest, and Newcastle, and Chelsea — will proceed to drop factors right here and there. It is going to be attention-grabbing to see if Manchester Metropolis can decide up sufficient factors to shut the hole and apply some strain.
Liverpool host Arsenal on the second weekend in Could. Arsenal’s mission for the following 4 months is to make that recreation matter — and I feel there’s each likelihood they’ll.
Provided that Liverpool win that one, to provide themselves a commanding lead with a few weeks of the season to go, will I see them as champions-elect.
James McNicholas
Ever since Steven Pienaar of Everton slid in to safe a 4-4 draw at Previous Trafford in April 2012, I’ve all the time made some extent of holding onto hope in a title race.
Pienaar’s Eighty fifth-minute equaliser in a match Manchester United had led 3-1 after 66 minutes was a objective that helped Manchester Metropolis to make up an eight-point deficit with simply six video games to go and a kind of unbelievable events the place the determined psychological gymnastics — ‘They only have to lose at Wigan, drop factors at residence to Everton, and we’ll beat them on the Etihad’ — completely checked out.
However even my optimism can solely stretch to this point.
Metropolis are out of this race, Christian Norgaard’s stoppage-time header to disclaim them a 2-1 win at Brentford on Tuesday the newest reminder that the reigning champions are far too flaky to make up what’s presently a 12-point hole.
Norgaard’s late equaliser for Brentford on Tuesday underlined Metropolis’s frailties (Clive Rose/Getty Pictures)
That realistically leaves Arsenal, who I simply can’t see reeling Liverpool again in with their inconsistency in entrance of objective and damage disruptions to their right-hand aspect.
Arsenal should go to Anfield within the season’s third-last spherical of fixtures, and until they’re virtually faultless from now till then, it appears like being the fixture that would enable the present leaders to ease their strategy to glory.
Thom Harris
If you’re writing about one thing that will arrive sooner or later, there’s an comprehensible warning, a worry that you just’ll be made to look ridiculous ought to your prediction become nonsense.
However even with that in thoughts, I’m fairly assured about this one: I gained’t predict some extent between now and the tip of the season on Could 25 when it will likely be clear Liverpool have the title within the bag — as a result of I feel it’s already in there.
If we’re selecting some extent once I turned certain, it was in all probability not a single recreation, however that first week in December, once they beat Manchester Metropolis with relative ease, one thing that got here not lengthy earlier than Arsenal drew with Fulham after which Everton.
The knowledge is much less about Liverpool, a superb if not traditionally good crew, however extra that I simply don’t belief any of the chasing pack to be constant sufficient to catch them. Metropolis are going by means of some stuff, Arsenal aren’t ruthless sufficient, Chelsea are wobbling, groups will determine the right way to beat Nottingham Forest quickly sufficient, Newcastle are the shape crew now however are an Alexander Isak damage away from hassle.
Liverpool will finish because the final crew standing, the perfect of a Premier League season by which the general high quality has evened out, with out one single behemoth overshadowing the remaining.
Nick Miller
It appears to me that solely supporters of different golf equipment are sure that the 2024-25 title will arrive at Anfield.
If it doesn’t, it conveniently offers them the possibility to say Liverpool choked. You construct them up, you knock them down.
Like a variety of Liverpudlians, I’m fairly assured the season will finish in championship success for Arne Slot’s crew. But there’s additionally warning attributable to current recollections, in addition to longer ones. Below Jurgen Klopp, Liverpool led the way in which 3 times at this stage of a season however solely as soon as had been they in the identical place when the music stopped after 38 video games.
Additional again, the promise of groups led by Roy Evans, Rafael Benitez and Brendan Rodgers was marked in springtime earlier than hopes light on the run-in.
It’s for these causes that I’ll solely make sure in regards to the potentialities regarding Slot’s Liverpool when these presently chasing can now not catch them.
Simon Hughes
(High photograph: Phil Noble/AFP through Getty Pictures)