Unforeseen Twist: Arsenal’s Resurgence Provides Liverpool with Champions League Redemption Shot
Liverpool’s journey in the current Premier League season has been far from impressive. Their brief stint in the top four occurred early on, following a draw with Fulham in the second match of the season. However, that placement was largely due to the timing of the fixture, with Arsenal having triumphed over Crystal Palace the previous night.
Since then, the Reds have endured a rollercoaster of struggles, resulting in a fluctuating league position. They plummeted to 16th after the initial three games, then climbed to fifth in the subsequent weeks. Throughout the first half of the season, Liverpool oscillated within the top half before a disheartening 3-0 defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers pushed them down to 10th place in early February.
Even after their resounding 6-1 victory over Leeds United last month, Jurgen Klopp’s side found themselves languishing in eighth place. However, a string of six consecutive triumphs, kick-started by that memorable win at Elland Road, has breathed new life into Liverpool’s aspirations of securing a spot in the Champions League—a prospect that seemed unattainable mere weeks ago.
Nevertheless, the road ahead remains challenging. Newcastle United, currently sitting third with 65 points, and Manchester United, one point ahead of Liverpool in fourth with 63 points, both have an extra match to play. Liverpool’s final three fixtures—an encounter with Aston Villa sandwiched between away games against relegation-threatened Leicester City and Southampton—present winnable opportunities. However, achieving maximum points is likely essential for their chances of clinching a top-four position.
Fortunately for the Reds, their competitors are faltering as the finish line approaches. Newcastle has suffered two defeats in their last five matches, while United has dropped a staggering 16 points in their past nine Premier League outings, including losses against Brighton and West Ham United in the past week.
Undoubtedly, United has a more favorable run-in, with none of their remaining four games against teams with significant stakes and three of them taking place at home. Meanwhile, Newcastle faces trickier assignments against strugglers Leeds and Leicester, along with a home clash against Brighton, who were themselves vying for a top-four spot until their recent woeful 5-1 loss to Everton.
Liverpool can draw encouragement from recent history, where teams managed to bridge gaps in the final three fixtures to secure Champions League qualification. Spurs, for instance, found themselves in a similar situation last season, trailing fourth-placed Arsenal by four points with three games remaining. Spurs notably defeated their rivals 3-0 in the next match, but it still required Arsenal to lose against Newcastle in their penultimate fixture, while Tottenham won against Burnley and Norwich City to secure their Champions League spot.
The preceding year witnessed Liverpool making a remarkable comeback to surpass their rivals. With a game in hand, the Reds languished in sixth place, trailing West Ham by one point (58), Leicester by five points (63), and Chelsea by six points (64) with three matches left. Klopp’s side won all four remaining games, surpassing the Hammers, while both Leicester and Chelsea faltered, losing two of their final three fixtures. Liverpool ultimately finished third.
While Manchester United edged out Leicester City in a dramatic last-day clash to secure fourth place in 2020, late entries into the Champions League spots have been infrequent. Notably, Arsenal overtook Tottenham in 2006 after the Spurs squad was plagued by food poisoning ahead of their final-day defeat to West Ham. Liverpool also suffered a memorable setback in 1997, drawing against Sheffield Wednesday on the last day and dropping from second to fourth place when only the top three earned Champions League qualification.
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