Liverpool title slip-up risk: ‘Biggest bottle jobs of all time’
Liverpool have been warned they could be viewed as the “biggest bottle jobs of all time” if they fail to win the Premier League title this season.
Arne Slot is looking to secure the trophy in his first season with the club and they are currently in a strong position to do so.
The Reds sit seven points clear at the top of the table following a 2-1 win over Wolves on Sunday afternoon (16 February), although many will feel they fortunate not to drop points in that game.
Ibrahima Konate was lucky to avoid a second yellow card, and Liverpool looked far from secure in defence after Matheus Cunha had pulled one back for the visitors.
That has led to some questions about whether the Merseysiders can get over the line, especially with the fixtures they have to come next.
Liverpool face daunting run as Jim White sounds warning
On Wednesday (19 February), Slot‘s side have the chance to go ten points clear at the top of the table, when they take on Aston Villa at Villa Park, in what could be a tricky task against Unai Emery’s team.
After that, Liverpool will also face current champions Man City who are showing signs of a return to form, and their Carabao Cup final opponents Newcastle United in the league before the end of February.
If they were to drop points in those games, it would open the door for second placed Arsenal to close the gap, and potentially overhaul them in the race for the title.
| Current Premier League position | Club | Played | Points |
| 1st | Liverpool | 25 | 60 |
| 2nd | Arsenal | 25 | 53 |
Jim White now believes that if that was to happen, it would represent a bigger collapse than any seen before at the level.
Speaking on talkSPORT about the challenge facing Liverpool in those next three games, and what it could mean for the title race, White said: “If they lost it from here Simon, it could be looked upon as the biggest bottle job of all time.
“I mean they’ve got the chance to go ten clear tonight. If they lose tonight, lose at City, lose against Newcastle all of a sudden…”
In response, former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan suggested that they would have to be compared with the collapse from Arsenal two years ago if they failed to win the title from their current position.
Jordan admitted that while the Gunners dropped points to lesser opposition then, the lead Liverpool have, combined with the increasingly injury hit squad at Arsenal means Slot’s side losing the title from here would be a bottle job of the “same standard”.
Liverpool desperate to avoid title slip-up
Football Insider Verdict
It would be a major disaster for Liverpool if they failed to win the title from their current position in the Premier League.
Of course, they do have a challenging run of fixtures to come, and there were plenty of signs of nerves in that win over Wolves last time out.
But if they to claim top spot at the end of the season, that is something they are simply going to have to deal with as all good title winning sides do.
Indeed, they would have to play these fixtures at some point before the campaign ends anyway, as will any other club, so Liverpool ought not to fear the fact they are all coming here and now.
Failure to win from here would only intensify these sort of claims, and the pressure that brings with it would add to the challenge they face when competing for titles in the future.
As a result, it seems vital for the club both for this season and beyond that Slot is able to guide his side over the line to lift the title.