OPINION
It’s too early to make predictions as to whether champions Manchester City or European royalty Liverpool will lift the Premier League trophy this season, but there are promising early signs for the latter.
The two point gap they already have over City is one, although probably of little consequence in the grand scheme of things, but it’s performance like Saturday’s 3-0 victory over Burnley that suggests they could go all the way this campaign.
That’s certainly the line of thinking that has developed in former Premier League winner Gary Neville’s mind: “I said last year I thought they were a championship team. They are a championship team. They are playing at a level that could win the title,” he told Sky Sports.
There’s no doubt that Jurgen Klopp’s side have the look of champions early on, and Neville – a die-hard Manchester United man – noticing it and picking up on it will surely delight the Liverpool faithful.
The Reds didn’t look great in the early goings on Saturday. They were struggling to create much of note at Turf Moor, and it was only when Trent Alexander-Arnold’s cross took a deflection off the unfortunate Chris Wood and ballooned into the net, that thing started to click into gear.
When that occurred, though, they looked like a different team. Before long they had bagged another through Sadio Mane, with Roberto Firmino finishing things off in the second half.
Liverpool were like a great white shark who just smelled blood – they pounced with ruthless efficiency. Burnley couldn’t stand up to them, and it’s doubtful that many teams will be able to this term.
However, what Neville said about City that will also bring a smile to Reds fans’ faces: “If [Aymeric] Laporte’s injury is a serious one, it is a big problem for City.”
Again, he’s spot on. The Frenchman went down under a poor challenge from Brighton & Hove Albion’s Adam Webster on Saturday, and had to be stretchered off.
If the former Athletic Bilbao man faces a significant length of time on the sidelines then that could be disastrous for Pep Guardiola’s side – but potentially hugely advantageous to Klopp’s men.
