Either Arne Slot is enjoying the longest honeymoon in history or his Liverpool side are the real deal.
The Premier League leaders have made a strong case for the latter in recent weeks that have seen impressive wins over the likes of Chelsea, Real Madrid and, most recently, Manchester City.
A record of 11 wins, one draw and one defeat in their first 13 Premier League games under the Dutchman, who has made a mockery of pre-season chatter on the difficulty following a dynastic manager, has given Liverpool a mammoth nine-point lead at the top of the standings.
No team has failed to lift the trophy in May from such a commanding position.
Following the Reds’ commanding 2-0 win over Pep Guardiola’s out-of-sorts side, Opta’s supercomputer updated their chances of winning their 20th top-flight title to a huge 83.7 per cent.
But that, of course, is 16.3 per cent shy of certainty and with two thirds of the season still to play, there are likely to be many pitfalls ahead. Mail Sport takes a look at the reasons why Slot’s machine can be caught.
Liverpool sit an incredible nine points clear at the top of the Premier League after just 13 games
Arne Slot is enjoyable a scarcely believable start to life as Liverpool manager, following his arrival in the summer
INJURIES
‘People only talk about injuries if the results are not there,’ said the Liverpool boss ahead of Sunday’s showdown with Manchester City. The Reds were without six first-team players for the game, more than their opponents, and their situation doesn’t look to be improving anytime soon.
Sunday brought the news that Conor Bradley, who turned in a starring performance against Real Madrid last week, could be out until the new year, while Ibrahima Konate is set to be sidelined for a prolonged spell. Add in problems to Kostas Tsimikas and Alisson Becker and the Reds look incredibly thin in the backline.
Slot bluntly admitted that ‘five defenders for four positions going into a month like this is far from ideal’. The relentless schedule only ramps up as the year draws to a close.
The performance of Joe Gomez against the Premier League champions showed the quality of the Liverpool squad but another defensive injury could seriously derail their charge. That counts for double if Mohamed Salah were to be unavailable for a prolonged stretch.
Ibrahima Konate has been one of Liverpool’s best performers this season but he’s set to miss crucial games due to injury
The Reds could be without vital defensive cover until the new year following the news that Conor Bradley is set for a prolonged spell on the sidelines
PRE-CHRISTMAS RUN
‘Liverpool haven’t faced a real test’ was the common refrain after their fast start to the season. But 20 games in and having bested their fair share of tough opponents, the Reds have now passed that test in the eyes of most onlookers.
However, there remain a host of potential banana skins in the weeks leading up to Christmas, with the first coming away at Newcastle on Wednesday before the final Goodison Park Merseyside derby on Saturday.
Additionally, there are clashes against both Fulham and Tottenham, sides certainly capable of taking points off the league leaders on their day.
Liverpool have a couple of tricky away games coming up, including the last-ever Merseyside derby at Goodison Park
THE CHASING PACK
No sooner had Liverpool effectively ended Manchester City’s title charge had attention turned to the new most likely contenders. Chelsea and Arsenal are their nearest challengers, with both clubs nine points behind the Reds after claiming confident wins this weekend.
But it will be Mikel Arteta’s side that will concern Liverpool and their fans the most. For 35 minutes against West Ham, Arsenal were frightening. Their unstoppable corner kicks, the brilliance of Martin Odegaard and the consistency of Bukayo Saka were on full display as they blew the Hammers away.
West Ham’s mad 10 minutes made the scoreline a little nicer, and angered Arteta to no end, but it should not takeaway from his side’s ability to be truly irresistible on their day. Since the return of their captain, the Gunners have put three past Nottingham Forest and five past Sporting and the Hammers.
Arsenal need to go on a big run and hope the Reds slip up and they now look capable of holding up their end of the bargain.
As for Chelsea, the 2024-25 campaign may have arrived too soon for their young roster that finally looks to be clicking and is set up to compete for years to come. Perhaps the Blues can shock the league and claim an unlikely title but their one point from three games against City, Liverpool and Arsenal show they are not quite at that level.
Arsenal have returned to their devastating best since the return of their skipper Martin Odegaard
Enzo Maresca’s Chelsea, led by Cole Palmer (right) have been one of the surprises of the season so far
CONTRACT DISTRACTIONS
In many ways, it is remarkable that Liverpool have been able to navigate the early months of the season with the contract uncertainty that hangs over the heads of three of their stars.
And it’s not like the situation hasn’t come under the intense glare of the media and football supporters. Following Salah’s match-winning double against Southampton last week, he made a b-line for a gaggle of reporters to inform them of his ‘disappointment’ that no one at the club has spoken to him about a new deal, while his parting comment of ‘I’m more out than in’ has already been pored over extensively.
But Salah’s contract situation does not appear to be hampering his performances this term, and the same can be said for Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold. All three are playing some of their best football in years.
However, it is equally easy to imagine a world where it could quickly become an issue, especially as January 1 approaches and the trio are free to negotiate contracts with foreign clubs. Just think about the near-constant speculation that will surround them during the winter transfer window.
That’s the last thing that Slot will want. Well, other than to actually lose all three of them for nothing at the end of the campaign.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed are all out of contract at the end of the season
DOMESTIC CUP RUNS
Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher floated the idea that his old side should look to heavily rotate their side in domestic cup matches in order to prioritse the Premier League and Champions League.
This, of course, is a well-trodden path for elite teams, whose rosters are packed full of quality in every position. But with injuries already biting the squad, forcing Slot to chose from an even smaller pool of players, it could be advisable to give the kids another run out, just as they did to great effect last term.
Before the halfway mark of the campaign, the Reds travel down to the south coast to face Southampton in the quarter-final of the Carabao Cup and on the evidence of their recent league fixture, it will not be straight forward.
Should they advance, they’ll contest a two-legged semi-final in the new year, with their opponent likely to be one of Arsenal, Manchester United, Tottenham or Newcastle.
The Liverpool boss may have a chance to rotate his side when they take on League Two strugglers Accrington Stanley at Anfield in the third round of the FA Cup.
Slot would love to get his hands on his first piece of silverware as Liverpool boss as soon as possible, but spreading his squad too thin could leave them emptyhanded in May.
Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher shared the view that the Reds need to rest their best players in the domestic cup competitions to give themselves the best chance of the winning the big prizes
The core of the Liverpool team that beat Manchester City to the title in 2020 remain in Slot’s side
THE PRESSURE
Gunners manager Mikel Arteta, agonisingly beaten to the Premier League crown by his former boss in each of the last two seasons, offered Liverpool some advice after their flying start. It’s unclear whether the Spaniard has forgotten that the Reds roster retains a core of players who triumphed over the Citizens. In fact, the Anfield club are the only side to disrupt City’s monopoly in the last seven years.
‘We’ve been there and to sustain it for 10 months is extremely difficult – everything has to go your way,’ he told reporters ahead of the Gunners’ London derby against West Ham. ‘Just when you think you have it, plop! Everything collapses. Results can change through injuries, decisions and it can happen at any moment. You have to be ready for that but it’s something you can’t always control. All you can control is to do your very best.’
One thing he failed to mention, though nevertheless alluded to, is the pressure. More specifically, the pressure of being the frontrunner. During the 2022-23 campaign, Arsenal led the league for 248 days, the most in history for a team who failed to win the English top-flight title.
Last season, it was Liverpool who spent the most days on top, leading the way for 11 more days than the Gunners and City could manage. But it was ultimately Guardiola’s side who were looking down at their challengers when all was said and done.
The task before this current crop of Liverpool players is different. The chasm between first and second place – a gap larger than that between second and 13th – invites huge expectation. To an ever greater degree, very minute of every game will be scrutinised, every dropped point will feel like three and May will seem like an age away.
Luckily for the Anfield club, they have a recent example of a side that prevailed under that intense strain, themselves, five shirt years ago.
