Liverpool pile pressure on Manchester City in title race after edging West Ham
Jurgen Klopp is usually very quick to brush off any talk of Liverpool challenging for the Premier League title. The Germanโs stance has always been that Manchester City are the favourites.
While that is true, the Reds are currently the only team that can challenge Pep Guardiolaโs side for the title. It was supposed to be a three-horse race, but Chelsea have fallen off in recent months. Meanwhile, Manchester United, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur are locked in a battle to finish in the top four.
What has kept the Reds in the title race is their consistency. They once again demonstrated their resilience by beating West Ham United on Saturday. A first-half strike from Sadio Mane was enough to see off the Hammers, who gave the Reds a tough game at Anfield and nearly upset the hosts.
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Only three points separate the top two
Liverpoolโs win over West Ham has seen them move within three points of Premier League leaders Manchester City;
Even better for the Reds, Guardiolaโs side have a difficult game against cross-city rivals Manchester City at the Etihad on Sunday. So anything less than a win would reduce their slim advantage.
Not many teams can come back from a 12-point gap to rival Manchester City. However, the Reds have done exactly that, winning their last seven league games, and are now counting on the Cityzens to slip up.
Manchester City could restore their six-point lead by the end of the weekend, but the Reds have a game in hand. That only makes the title race interesting, especially as the Reds also have to travel to the Etihad.
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Liverpool pile pressure on Manchester City
Liverpool have been ramping up the pressure on Manchester City in recent weeks. With Kloppโs side on a roll in the league at the moment, the pressure has become more intense.
Guardiola knows very well that dropping points against United will only boost the confidence of the Reds and hand them the momentum in the title race. With the Reds not dropping points in the league since a 2-2 draw at Chelsea, it doesnโt look like theyโll slow down anytime soon.
โWe had to (win). There was no other choice. We will come to that point pretty soon probably that when you win seven - or for us, 12 in all competitions in a row - then you cannot not only win the ones where you are flying,โ Klopp said after the victory over West Ham, as quoted by Liverpoolfc.com.
The Reds manager continued:
โToday we were obviously not flying; we had to dig really deep, and that's what the boys did. It is necessary to get something out of this season that we keep on going, and (there is) no time to rest, so just keep going.โ
The result in Sundayโs Manchester derby wonโt determine the title race. Nevertheless, Guardiola and his side canโt stop looking over their shoulders with Liverpool closing in.