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Are Liverpool cracking under the title pressure?

Are Liverpool cracking under the title pressure?
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On Monday night, Premier League leaders Liverpool drew 1-1 with West Ham to extend their lead at the top of the table to three points over reigning champions Manchester City. Despite the point, there seems to be a feeling of deflation about the Reds.

After seemingly relentless form, Jurgen Klopp’s side has now drawn their last two Premier League games against mid-table teams. The leaders have not been at their energetic best, with the likes of Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Saleh uncharacteristically quiet in the draws.

The third part of the Reds dynamic front three Sadio Mane has scored in both the recent draws but he has not looked as dangerous as he did at the start of the campaign. The theory that if the front three are kept quiet then Liverpool have little else is starting to look valid.

Liverpool simply ran out of ideas against the Hammers, much to the frustration of boss Jurgen Klopp and the clubs fans.

It would not be a massive surprise to see Liverpool let a big lead at the top of the table slip through their fingers. They have a history of losing title race when out in front, with the most recent back in 2014, when the Reds throw away a four-point lead with three games to go.

However, Liverpool have seemed like a stronger team this season than their 2014 counterparts. They have been strong in defence and attack until recently. The next few weeks of the campaign will be a massive test of the Reds resolve.

They were always going to go through a sticky period in the campaign and let us not forget that Liverpool have only drawn two games, it is not as if they have suffered two defeats.

What the draws have done is give reigning champions Manchester City the chance to go top of the table when they visit Liverpool’s neighbours Everton on Wednesday night. It will then be down to the Merseysiders to respond and show if they really have the mental strength to become champions.

Premier League
OVERALL TABLE PTS GP W D L +/-
1
Manchester City 73 32 22 7 3 44
2
Arsenal 71 32 22 5 5 49
3
Liverpool 71 32 21 8 3 41
4
Aston Villa 63 33 19 6 8 19
5
Tottenham 60 32 18 6 8 16
6
Newcastle United 50 32 15 5 12 17
7
Manchester United 50 32 15 5 12 -1
8
West Ham 48 33 13 9 11 -6
9
Chelsea 47 31 13 8 10 9
10
Brighton 44 32 11 11 10 2
11
Wolverhampton 43 32 12 7 13 -5
12
Fulham 42 33 12 6 15 -2
13
Bournemouth 42 32 11 9 12 -10
14
Crystal Palace 33 32 8 9 15 -17
15
Brentford 32 33 8 8 17 -11
16
Everton 27 32 9 8 15 -16
17
Nottingham Forest 26 33 7 9 17 -16
18
Luton Town 25 33 6 7 20 -24
19
Burnley 20 33 4 8 21 -35
20
Sheffield United 16 32 3 7 22 -54

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