Jamie Carragher has suggested that the Premier League title race could be impacted by whoever gets further in the Champions League out of Liverpool and Manchester City.
The ex-Reds’ man also claims that his former side can stop talk of the wheels coming off of their title challenge with a resounding victory over Bournemouth at the weekend.
Speaking to Sky Sports News, the pundit said of the Reds’ patchy form: “We don’t know [what’s going on]. We will have to see how long it continues. They have to put it right against Bournemouth.
“It doesn’t matter what anyone says really – whether it’s nerves, poor performance or whatever it may be. The only way they can stop that talk is by winning games. What they need to do is win the game against Bournemouth convincingly to put a bit of that talk to bed.
“I don’t think it would be the end of the world if City went top, I think they will do tonight [when they face Everton]. There’s still a long way to go and I think once you get down to March or April that’s when I think the title will be decided.
“I believe there will be lots of twists and turns and whichever side goes further in the Champions League will also have a big bearing on it.”
OPINION
In a season of such fine margins, something as simple as the fatigue caused by an extra couple of games towards the end of the season could be a huge deciding factor. Both Liverpool and Manchester City are caught in a bit of a catch 22 in that respect, and it will now become a juggling act as Klopp and Guardiola try to decide how much effort and backing to put into the Premier League and the Champions League respectively. From Liverpool’s point of view, they have to win the league. It’s been 29 years and it would mean so much to the red half of the city without a doubt. But equally, Klopp knows just how far his side can go in Europe, and if he were to take a hit on the continent and still not lift the title, he would probably never live it down. It’s a predicament, and one that will only be solved with the passing of time, but right now, the Reds surely have to prioritise the league.
