Aiming to win every home game is a good start. Playing in front of your own fans offers the benefits of local familiarity, travel and vocal support.It will also help us get as close as possible to 60 points among the 10 teams that finished at the bottom of the final table. It’s easier to earn points and collect 2/3 of the title challenge.
But while all wins are theoretically equal, beating a struggling club means nothing. The “six pointers” cliché rears its head when one group plays another.Back to the Red Devils and Tottenham Hotspurs. They are fighting for Champions League qualification (or at least Europe). It was an important result for Tottenham, especially as they fell behind twice in the game and away. For United, at least the draw moved them away from the minor league foothills of the Big Six clubs. From Liverpool’s perspective, the problem was sending the Reds down the left. No team has won the league since Jurgen Klopp’s first full season without finishing second in the Big Six.
At the halfway point of the campaign, Liverpool had suffered just one defeat – at Tottenham – although they had drawn in those games, which was rare. Previous title challenges have also failed due to too many draws, with the Reds finishing level with Chelsea, Manchester City, Arsenal and United. All is not lost for Liverpool, for several reasons. In the four seasons between 2016/17 and the Reds’ English title campaign, the Big Six finished in the top six, and it was the same two years ago.
However, that result is unlikely in 2023/24 (both Aston Villa and West Ham are currently in the top six), and in the future when Newcastle are backed by Saudi Arabia’s National Investment Fund. The Reds are second only to Villa in the race for the top six this season. Meanwhile, Chelsea, Tottenham and City still have to travel to Anfield, while United remain unbeaten at Old Trafford. Mauricio Pochettino’s side are very unstable, Anfield will be a hotbed for Tottenham after the second leg and the atmosphere will heat up even more when City come calling. Send the clichéd warning signs, but talk about the six things that are pending. Another positive aspect of Liverpool’s poor performance in their biggest games when they are top of the league is that it shows how well they have performed against the rest of the division.
Klopp’s side have won 13 of their 15 games, two against the other 14, and only dropped points in draws against Brighton and Luton. Liverpool averaged 2.73 points per game against lesser clubs, 0.02 less than when they won the league and 0.04 less than their season best. Chelsea’s 2016/17 Championship side are the only team to achieve a 2.73 rating in the last seven seasons. There is certainly a basis for tilting the subject. But Chelsea will be looking to improve against the bigger sides when they travel to Anfield in a fortnight’s time.
In the grand scheme of things, Manchester United’s 2-2 draw with Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford on Sunday appears to have had little impact on Liverpool’s title hopes this season. But that revealed something that didn’t matter to the Reds. If you want to blast your way to the top of the Premier League, there are several ways to crack the rankings.
