Despite Liverpool having taken an early lead in the race for the Premier League title, it would be foolish to write off either Manchester City or Arsenal, Reds expert David Lynch has argued.
Arne Slot became the first Premier League manager to win 14 of his first 16 games in charge when his side beat Bayer Leverkusen on Tuesday, and last weekend the Reds took control of the title race after coming from behind to beat Brighton & Hove Albion 2-1.
Arsenal and Manchester City lost to Newcastle United and Bournemouth respectively on the same day as the victory against Brighton, and while Liverpool only have a two-point lead on City, they have a commanding seven-point lead on the Gunners.
With Mikel Arteta's side struggling for form and Pep Guardiola's team currently in the midst of an injury crisis, some have suggested that the Premier League is now Slot's to lose.
However, Lynch remains more cautious, telling Sports Mole: "We shouldn't be completely shocked [by Liverpool's form] because this team was in a title challenge last season as well. I know they did fall away in April, but that's only one month out from the end of the season. They were right there at the top of the table. So they've clearly shown that they're capable of picking up a lot of points.
"Start with Arsenal, seven points behind. OK, I wouldn't sit here and say they're out of the title race, but that's a big deficit to claw back.
"With City, I watched the highlights of their game against Bournemouth, and again, I don't want to get carried away with them because I think they tend to have some odd results at the start of seasons, and then they do win 20 on the bounce and all of a sudden they're the title favourites.
"You'd be an idiot to write them off under [Guardiola] and with the quality that they've got. But the degree to which Bournemouth played through them and just tore them apart, you have to think that has something to do with Rodri's absence."
Arsenal's struggles
Arsenal have already dropped points in five games this season, and while some of these dropped points can be attributed to the fact they have been reduced to 10 men on three separate occasions, it is fair to say the Gunners have been underwhelming so far.
Arteta's side have been accused by some of being overly pragmatic this season, but their approach does not seem to be working given they have already conceded 11 times in the Premier League after 10 games, and they are on track to concede roughly 13 more goals than they did in 2023-24.
"Some of [Liverpool's] rivals are having problems," Lynch added.
"[Arsenal] look in a bit of trouble, and you just wouldn't want to be in their position. I was quite big on Arsenal, even after they had a few wonky results at the start, because I thought they've had a really difficult start on paper.
"They've had a couple of injuries, they've had red cards in unfortunate moments. But as I say, regardless of that mitigation, it gets to the point where the gap becomes so big that you can't claw it back, no matter how many of your problems you solve."
Interestingly, if Arsenal were to return to their 2.34 points per game average from last term for the rest of the 2024-25 campaign, they would end the current season on roughly 84 points, five fewer than they achieved in 2023-24.
© Imago
If City win title, the managerial GOAT debate is over
As for City, the season-ending injury to Rodri has been compounded by the fact Kevin De Bruyne, John Stones, Jack Grealish and others have missed games this term, and Guardiola's side look increasingly vulnerable defensively.
Titles in recent seasons have generally been won with at least 90 points, and now that Arsenal seem unlikely to cross that threshold, Liverpool have arguably become the team best placed to challenge City's stranglehold on the Premier League.
Manchester City lost 4-1 against Ruben Amorim's Sporting Lisbon on Tuesday, and if the champions were to lose on the weekend against Brighton, it would be the first time in his career that Guardiola has lost four games in a row.
Lynch believes that the absence of Ballon d'Or winner Rodri could be enough to cost the Citizens the title, but believes that Guardiola could cement himself as the greatest manager of all time if he overcomes that challenge to claim a fifth successive top-flight crown.
"You just wonder whether in the absence of Rodri that, the games where they don't play as well and they aren't as dominant and they can't just pen you in for 90 minutes and eventually the goal will come, and if those games become more frequent, then the chances that they drop points becomes more frequent," Lynch told Sports Mole.
"It makes a huge difference when you're pushing for the other side of 90 points. So it is encouraging for Liverpool. And we'll just see whether it really is the Rodri absence or it is a little bit of City just finding the feet and working things out as they usually do.
"I think it will be an unbelievable achievement in managerial terms if Pep Guardiola can completely mask that across the season. For me, [Rodri] was a deserved Ballon d'Or winner as the most influential player in any team in world football. He's that good.
"And so like I say, [if Pep] masks that and manages to get the other side of 90 points, then I think the conversation about him being the best of all time might actually be over. That's genuinely how highly I would rate that as an achievement, because I think Rodri is phenomenal and irreplaceable."
Liverpool will be eagerly awaiting the outcome of City's match against Brighton, but the Reds at least have the chance to temporarily go 10 points clear of Arsenal when they host Aston Villa at Anfield on Saturday evening.
Lewis Nolan
