Liverpool has moved eight points clear at the top of the Premier League table after it beat Southampton on the south coast thanks to goals from Dominik Szoboszlai and Mohamed Salah.
Arne Slot has now won 16 out of his first 18 matches in charge in all competitions, only dropping points in games against Nottingham Forest at Anfield and then Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium. And despite Real Madrid coming to Merseyside midweek in the Champions League, the biggest fixtures of this week are in the league after Manchester City’s 4-0 home defeat to Tottenham.
In the league, Liverpool has Manchester City next, of course, with that looking like a massive fixture. And after that, there is another big week with away games against Newcastle and then Everton in the space of four days, including an early lunchtime kick-off in the final Merseyside derby at Goodison Park.
Fulham and Tottenham follow that as Liverpool heads into the festive period. And while none of those games are easy, the Reds should be confident of being top of the pile by Christmas Day considering their current position.
Liverpool’s next five league games: Man City (H), Newcastle (A), Everton (A), Fulham (H), Tottenham (A).
Manchester City has lost five in a row in all competitions but that won’t last forever. It is already Pep Guardiola’s worst ever run as a coach. You wouldn’t want to be Feyenoord going to the Etihad Stadium midweek in Europe…
Domestically, after playing Liverpool, Manchester City has some interesting games. Nottingham Forest can be a test as Liverpool knows but Arsenal just showed it can be beaten. Crystal Palace is inconsistent while the Manchester derby is hard to predict given we don’t know much about Ruben Amorim yet. And then Aston Villa away will be far from straightforward.
Man City’s next five league games: Liverpool (A), Nottingham Forest (H), Crystal Palace (A), Man Utd (H), Aston Villa (A).
Arsenal has had the hardest start of all the title contenders but its injury “crisis” is now over and Martin Odegaard and Bukayo Saka looked in fine form this weekend. West Ham is really struggling at the moment and it should beat Fulham, Everton and Crystal Palace when push comes to shove. The problem for Mikel Arteta is that his side is trailing and needing to recover lost ground.
Arsenal’s next five league games: West Ham (A), Man Utd (H), Fulham (A), Everton (H), Crystal Palace (A).
