sábado, 14 de março de 2020

Liverpool's title will be underwhelming enough, denying them it is churlish

You don't have to go far to find a crazy theory in these times, up there is the suggestion Liverpool should not be given the Premier League title.

The coronavirus has spawned a plethora of misconceptions - like the worth of disposal goods needed or ways to boost your immunity - but the notion we should void the season and replay it next year denying the Reds a first top-flight title since 1989-90 deserves similar derision.


Let's put it in the most simple of terms. Cellar-dwellers Norwich City are as close to surpassing Wolves and Sheffield United to clinch a Europa League berth as Manchester City are to overtaking Liverpool.
The best Premier League examples of title chokes are not Newcastle in 1995-96 as legend has it but two of the teams this Liverpool side have been most compared to - Manchester United a year before their 1998-99 treble win and the pre-Invincibles Arsenal in 2002-2003.
Arsenal in 1997-98 made up an 11-point lead with nine games to go - as United without captain and ACL-victim Roy Keane (Erling Haaland's dad was there with a sympathetic word) and retired Eric Cantona lost ground to the first awesome Arsene Wenger Arsenal side, for whom Marc Overmars scored the winner in a pivotal game at Old Trafford.
Five years later, Arsenal had an eight-point lead in March when United won 15 of their last 18 games to secure the title (United also let a similar lead to their crosstown rivals slip in 2011-12). Sir Alex Ferguson's on-field celebrations after a 2-2 draw at Highbury was a memorable moment of this year - building an enmity that would see Martin Keown's simian smash at Ruud van Nistelrooy, Cesc Fabregas launching a pizza and Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira's head-to-head in the tunnel over the next two years.
Liverpool have double the points lead United had in 1998 - assuming City do beat Arsenal in their game in hand - the biggest ever in the Premier League and need just two wins if Pep Guardiola's side win their last 11 games. There is no way it could not happen. Although it would be hard not to find some amusement in Liverpool being denied the title in the most cruellest of manners after a 30-year wait, it makes no sense.
Annoyingly worthy as it might sound, this team really does deserves the title given their dominance over the competition. Most title-winning sides are not that memorable, but this one with the dynamic football Jurgen Klopp has them playing, having won 26 of their first 27 league matches, a front three worthy of comparison with any in English league history and right back Trent Alexander-Arnold playing a revolutionary role as chief playmaker, is one people will always recall and see as a reference point for future great sides.



And although you could hardly call them long-suffering, it would be unfair on a generation of Liverpool fans who have seen pictures of Emlyn Hughes, Phil Thompson, Graeme Souness and Alan Hansen lifting the top domestic honour to be denied the vision of Jordan Henderson doing the same.
Deciding relegation, promotion and who secures the fifth bonus Champions League spot are areas up for debate - going on current league places, introducing a mini play-off system or, reluctantly, keeping teams in their existing leagues, but at the apex at the top of the English football structure there should be no debate.

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