LONDON — Liverpool can take another giant step towards just a second English top-flight title in 35 years against fragile Manchester City on Sunday as Ruben Amorim aims for a first English Premier League win as Manchester United manager.
The top-of-the-table clash at Anfield offers Arsenal, who faces West Ham, and Chelsea, who hosts Aston Villa, the chance to gain ground.
Liverpool’s league to lose?
Arne Slot’s rampant Reds go into the weekend off the high of beating Real Madrid 2-0 to top the UEFA Champions League table.
Liverpool has barely put a foot wrong in the Premier League either, surging into an eight-point lead after just 12 games.
All three teams who have enjoyed a lead of eight points or more at this stage of the season in Premier League history have gone on to win the title.
City is there for the taking. Winless in six matches, the English champions are physically and mentally “fragile”, according to manager Pep Guardiola, who is experiencing the worst run of his career in the dugout.
“It has been, is being and will be a tough season for us. We have to accept it for many circumstances,” he said according to AFP.
Even at their best during a glorious era under the Catalan, City have failed to tame Anfield, with their last win there in front of a crowd coming back in 2003.
City is second-favourites to win a Premier League game for the first time in more than 2,500 days, according to one British bookmaker, but Liverpool manager Slot is reading nothing into the champions’ meltdown ahead of Sunday’s big clash at Anfield.
Premier League leaders Liverpool will go 11 points clear of City if they beat them on Sunday and the way Slot’s side are playing, few would bet against that happening.
A 2-0 victory over European champions made it 17 wins from 19 matches in all competitions for Liverpool since Slot replaced Juergen Klopp and also put them top of the Champions League table with a 100 per cent record.
With a shaken Guardiola describing City as ‘fragile’ it seems like the perfect time for Liverpool to make another huge statement of intent. But Slot is wary.
“They are still a very good team and one of the reasons why Pep is the best in the world, he always comes up with solutions for his problems,” the Dutchman told said according to Reuters.
“One might be (midfielder) Rodri is out now but he will come up with a solution, hopefully it is after Sunday. I wouldn’t be surprised if Pep comes up with another brilliant idea.”
Even when City was in their pomp, visits to Anfield has always been difficult.
Nine times Guardiola has taken a City side to Liverpool and only once did he taste victory — a 4-1 win behind closed doors in February 2021. Five times City were beaten with three other games ending in draws — including last season.
While City is stuck in a horrible rut, Arsenal has emerged from their own pit of despair in timely fashion to revive their hopes of keeping in touch with Slot’s side.
A 3-0 home win against Nottingham Forest last weekend ended a run of four Premier League games without a win and they followed that up by trouncing Sporting 5-1 in Lisbon in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Amorim seeks home comforts
Amorim did not hold back after seeing Manchester United labour to a 1-1 draw at lowly Ipswich in his first match in charge last weekend.
“We are going to suffer for a long period,” said the Portuguese coach. “This will take time, but I know we have to win games.”
The visit of struggling Everton to Old Trafford offers the Red Devils the perfect chance to kickstart life under their new boss.
The Toffees (10) is one of only three sides to have scored fewer Premier League goals this season than United’s 13.
Sean Dyche’s men are just two points above the relegation zone and have not beaten United away from home since 2013.
United, who sits 12th, needs to make the most of home advantage to move swiftly back up the table with daunting trips to Arsenal and City to come in two of their following three league games.
Villa hits the skids
Aston Villa is another side struggling for form. A 0-0 draw against Juventus in midweek extended their winless run to seven games in all competitions.
Unai Emery’s men are still well placed to progress to the knockout stages of the Champions League in their first taste of Europe’s elite competition for four decades.
But their European exertions are beginning to take a toll domestically. Villa has taken just seven points from their past seven league games to slip to eighth.
Next up is a difficult trip to Chelsea on Sunday, who is flying high in Enzo Maresca’s first season in charge.
The Blues sits third, ahead of Arsenal on goals scored, and could easily end the weekend as Liverpool’s closest challengers should City fail to end their winless run at Anfield.
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