Why Liverpool look ready for a tough run of games

Kolkata: In five matches in April and May 2023, Arsenal saw their Premier League title hopes evaporate. Three defeats, 1-4 to eventual champions Manchester City, 0-3 at home to Brighton – the biggest shock of them all – and 0-1 to Nottingham Forest where they looked spent, killed hopes of ending a 19-year wait to be champions.

It would be oversimplifying to say that those defeats, or the double whammy by Aston Villa last term, alone cost Arsenal two league titles. There were also injuries, tiredness, inability to make their domination count in other matches and City’s relentlessness. But there is no denying that a title race can be influenced by how a contender deals with a difficult run of fixtures.
For Premier League leaders Liverpool that time is now. Their next nine matches in England and Europe include contests against RB Leipzig, Arsenal, a double header against Brighton, Real Madrid, Bayer Leverkusen and Aston Villa. That’s five matches against teams who are either defending league or European champions or are in the top four. In the case of Real Madrid, it’s all three. Brighton, who meet Liverpool twice in three days, are fifth in the standings. Neither defending champions City nor Arsenal have it this bad.
“This is our biggest test, to play Champions League and Premier League, the hardest games, three days in a row,” said Liverpool manager Arne Slot after Sunday’s 2-1 win against Chelsea. It was Liverpool’s 10th win in 11 matches in all competitions and their seventh in eight rounds of the league. Liverpool’s Dutch manager though has always played down the superb start saying they have not met any of the top teams in the league.
Liverpool beat Milan away 3-1 in the Champions League but Chelsea were their first opponents in the league who were in the top nine. If how they dealt with a team that had come to Anfield on an eight-game unbeaten run in all competitions and had Cole Palmer is to be a pointer, Liverpool fans can look ahead in anticipation not apprehension.
Chelsea had 56% possession and 12 shots, which was four more than Liverpool. But Liverpool had four shots on target, two more than the visiting team. Which is proof of how difficult it has been to score against Liverpool this season. They have conceded thrice in the league which is five less than next best Arsenal and Newcastle among teams that have played eight rounds.
“Defensively Liverpool look more solid. Under Juergen Klopp it was amazing to watch, but as defenders you could be exposed,” former England defender Micah Richards said on Sky Sports. “The timing in which defenders drop back and push up is a lot more balanced.”
Against Chelsea, Liverpool absorbed early pressure and, as expected, were swift and sleek on the counter. “The better the teams you face, the more you need to fight,” said Slot afterwards. “We showed up, that was the most important thing.”
Mo Salah now has five assists, which is what he had in the entire 2020-21 season, and five goals. No one knows if he is going to stay but in the here and now, Salah, 32, looks to be at his best.
Chelsea took away a lot of positives but efficiency in the front third was not one of them. They may also have switched off in the immediate aftermath of Nicolas Jackson’s smart finish. Salah punished them with a delivery that was clever and classy. Curtis Jones did the rest.
Using one foot to cushion and another to score was proof of Jones’s ability. He had a role in the first goal as well, winning the penalty that Salah converted. Cody Gakpo’s disallowed goal too had Jones’s involvement.
Having risen from Liverpool’s academy, Jones, 23, got only his second Premier League start of the season on Sunday because Alexis Mac Allister needed rest after international duty. And slot in he did. As did Darwin Nunez after Diogo Jota was injured.
Substitutes filling in adequately, or more than adequately in Jones’s case, is key to a team dealing with tough matches coming thick and fast. From Ibrahima Konate replacing Jarell Quansah against Ipswich in their opening fixture of the season, Liverpool have been able to do that.
This was also Jones’s first Premier League goal since January 1. He could be one of those who help Liverpool end the year well.