Tony Cascarino has suggested that back to back draws against Leicester City and West Ham could end up costing Liverpool the title.
The Reds dropped points in consecutive matches with a pair of 1-1 draws after having just come back from a midseason training camp in Dubai, and Cascarino believes that that mini blip could be their downfall.
Writing in his column for the Times, he said: “If Liverpool end up finishing second, it is easy to pinpoint the 2-1 defeat away to Manchester City as the moment they lost the title.
“But for me it was the two draws in the space of a week against Leicester City and West Ham United three months ago. Those matches came on the back of the club’s mid-season training camp in Dubai and in both games Liverpool took an early lead but they looked so flat.
“I think that trip away took the wind out of their sails at a vital moment. They lost their momentum and dropped four crucial points.
“If they had won those games they could have gone into the final game needing only a draw to be champions.”
OPINION
Cascarino could be right on this one. Watching Liverpool in those two matches felt like watching a side who were struggling to kick into the right gear. They took the lead in both matches but laboured afterwards, and you have to wonder whether going to Dubai had an effect on things. Was it necessary to go halfway around the world in the middle of the season? Did it lull the squad into relaxing too soon? Nobody can say for sure, but certainly, it could come back to bite Jurgen Klopp’s men. The fact that we are talking about these games at all, however, is testament to just how ridiculous the level of competition has been this season. Liverpool could end up with 97 points and still end up in second. That is absurd, and yet here we are. Every team is allowed a blip in their season, and every team suffers them, but the fact that Liverpool’s could amount to one loss all campaign and two poorly timed draws is nothing short of incredible.
