LONDON: Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has said the fact his side top the Premier League table heading into the busy holiday period counts for little.
The Anfield club are four points clear at the summit going into their Boxing Day clash at home to Newcastle, with champions Manchester City second and Tottenham Hotspur six points adrift in third place.
Liverpool, however, have not won the English title in the Premier League era – their last domestic Championship crown came back in 1990. And with Tottenham having hammered Everton, Liverpool’s local rivals, 6-2 on Sunday, Klopp does not expect to have things all his own way during the rest of the season.
“You (the media) make these stories about who is in and who is out,” said Klopp.
“I saw the game against Everton who played absolutely more than okay and then they (Spurs) hit pretty much everything and it was really impressive how Tottenham did.
“The same will happen to Arsenal and Chelsea. No decision is made, why should it be? Nobody should feel safe, no one should feel out of the race. It is not a time to think about it.
“For me they (Tottenham) were never out so why should people be surprised they are now in? A lot of teams are in whatever you call the title race and that is how it should be.”
The German added: “That is maybe only the difference to last year when pretty much nobody was in any more at this time and that is good for all supporters out there.
“Being unbeaten in the league until December is not something I had too often in my life. We did really well so far, and we have to do even better from now on. That’s the challenge for us.”
Liverpool fans know only too well that being top at Christmas is no guarantee of the league title.
There may have only been two occasions in the past 10 years where the team top on December 25 failed to win the Premier League but in both instances it was Liverpool, in 2008 and 2014, who could not complete the job. – AFP
