Paul Merson has predicted that if Liverpool can win against Tottenham and Manchester City in the coming weeks then the race for the Premier League title will be over.
Jurgen Klopp’s side lost their 100 per cent league record on Sunday by drawing against Manchester United but are still six points clear of Man City at the top of the table.
Merson believes that if Liverpool were to win their next three matches against Spurs, Aston Villa and Man City, then they will go on to win their first-ever Premier League title by the end of the season.
“Tottenham are up next for Liverpool and it’s another hard game. If you looked at the start of the season at the two games against Manchester United and Tottenham, you’d have probably highlighted them as two hard games, but because of the form they haven’t turned out to be the hardest two games,” Merson said on the Sky Sports website.
“Liverpool need to win next weekend. Manchester City play before them and if Pep Guardiola’s side get a win then the gap is down to three points. There will obviously be a game in hand, but the pressure will be different as Liverpool will need to win.
“They then play Man City in a few weeks and if Jurgen Klopp’s side win the game and go nine points clear, you’d probably say goodnight to the title race.
“Liverpool would have to throw it away big time from there.”
OPINION
Why do pundits do this? Why do they claim that a title race can be done and dusted in early November? Yes, if Liverpool win their next three matches then they will have a lead of at least nine points at the top of the table. But they had an eight-point lead over Man City before this weekend. Why does one extra point make a difference? Liverpool won’t win all their remaining games. They have beaten Sheffield United, Red Bull Salzburg and Leicester in recent weeks without being convincing while their performance at Old Trafford on Sunday proved that there are flaws in Klopp’s side. If one of the regular front-three goes missing, especially Mohamed Salah, then there’s an issue. If they struggle in big games, there’s an issue. Liverpool will drop more points and could lose a game at some point. Man City are in the same boat of course but fans and pundits can only write off Pep Guardiola’s side at their own peril. They could be made to look very stupid.
