Arsenal, Liverpool and Man City are the top three in the Premier League at the moment. The order might change, but that is likely to remain the case in May.

Is Liverpool in a title race? For now, yes, though there is a lot still for Jürgen Klopp’s side to prove. For a large portion of their 4-3 win over Fulham, it looked like the Reds were demonstrating why it might fall just short of the level required.

But then Wataru Endō and Trent Alexander-Arnold popped up with two excellent late goals, showcasing why Liverpool might yet be a contender: even when it played poorly, it still had the character to win ugly. It is clear that Klopp’s men will have to dramatically improve over the next few weeks if they are to keep pace at the top, but you can read the Fulham game whichever way you like.

Manchester City has already dropped 12 points this season. If it was to continue to pick up points at the same rate as it has so far, it would end the campaign on 81. While Pep Guardiola will expect his side to improve, it does show that the bar might not be quite as high this year to win the title as it has been previously.

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That will benefit Arsenal, of course, but Liverpool too. While the Reds are still implementing the 2.0 version of their rebuild, a 95-ish points tally seems unattainable. Something in the mid-80s, though, could happen. It is currently on track for 84 with some difficult fixtures already out of the way.

“If Manchester City decide that they want to turn up and play at the level they can, at any point in the next two or three months, they will win the league,” Gary Neville said on his Sky Sports podcast. “They’ve got the best squad and they’ve got a manager that wins and wins and wins, so no one would be surprised if they are sat there at the end of the season at the top of the league.

 

“This is what I predicted when I said Arsenal would win the league: post-treble blues. You have reached utopia in football terms and it’s a mesmerizing height that they are never going to reach again probably. After that, how am I going to get going again? Sometimes you have to lose the league to feel the excitement to win it again.”

If Manchester City is set to have a slight off-season — and as well as the treble last year, it should not be forgotten that it too underwent a fairly substantial rebuild in the summer, losing key men and clutch goalscorers like İlkay Gündoğan and Riyad Mahrez — then Liverpool might be involved before it was expected to be. A three-way title race, for the first time in a long time, seems plausible.

“Liverpool have got Klopp, and that’s a factor because he can win and he has proven he can win,” Neville continued. “Arsenal have got to get to the run-in, but they have to prove they can handle a run-in. Last year, they went under and didn’t have enough. They failed in every single sense in that run-in. If City are not at the level, someone else can take you over.”

Arsenal leads the way for now but there are question marks over the Gunners in the same way there are about Liverpool. It still feels most likely that the side that finishes ahead of Manchester City will be the champion but it also feels possible that for once, that team might not have to be perfect. The Reds just need to keep on finding ways to win.

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Liverpool continued their seasonal resurgence with an awesome fightback victory against Fulham in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon, preserving their 100% record at Anfield this season.

With Manchester City dropping points at home to Tottenham Hotspur later in the day, Jurgen Klopp’s side have now advanced to second place and remain just two points away from table-toppers Arsenal.

 

 

 

 

While this revival is impressive – Liverpool were poor last year and finished fifth – there is undoubtedly work still to be done and Klopp will aim to strengthen the defensive department in January and next summer.

But there’s a possibility that a certain forward will leave Anfield sooner rather than later, and, as such, contingencies appear to have been made.

Liverpool transfer news – Leroy Sane

If Mohamed Salah leaves Liverpool in 2024, reports from October claimed that Bayern Munich maverick Leroy Sane has been earmarked as the first-choice replacement.

Such rumours have persisted, and – speaking to GIVEMESPORT – transfer insider Dean Jones has issued an update on the budding saga, revealing that the €100m (£87m) star is of genuine interest to Klopp’s side.

Jones said: “Sane has been linked for a while and I think there’s something in it in terms of Liverpool want to be kept abreast of the situation, but I don’t think there’s anything imminent on the cards. I don’t think Sane is on the verge of joining Liverpool.

 

 

 

 

 

But there is going to come a point when they have to start thinking more clearly about what happens after Salah.”

Why Liverpool are interested in Leroy Sane

Basically, Liverpool are monitoring Sane’s situation at Bayern because of the lingering uncertainty surrounding Salah’s future at Anfield, with the irreplaceable Egyptian forward needing an heir. As daunting as that sounds.

Salah, aged 31, is out of contract at the end of the 2024/25 campaign and was the subject of avaricious transfer attention from Saudi Pro League side Al-Ittihad in the summer, with Liverpool rejecting a staggering £150m offer late in the window.

 

 

 

 

 

It would be wrong to claim that Salah wasn’t interested in a move, but he remained a sterling example and did not even probe at the proposition of an exit, allowing the narrative to unfurl of its own accord.

That’s not to say that he will remain on Merseyside beyond his current deal, however, and the man who has plundered 199 goals and 86 assists from 325 appearances for the Reds will need a first-class replacement, and Sane may well be the man for the job.

Leroy Sane’s style of play

Signing for Bayern Munich from Manchester City for £55m in 2020 – where the Germany international scored 39 goals and provided 46 assists from 135 outings, notably winning two Premier League titles and the FA Cup – Sane has reinvented himself after a long-term injury at the end of his Citizens career.

 

 

 

 

Described as a “world-class” player by talent scout Jacek Kulig, Sane is electric and dynamic and is comfortable across both wings, actually finding more prolific success on the right of late.

Indeed, the £332k-per-week whiz has been exemplary this season and has posted nine goals and seven assists across 20 appearances in all competitions – scoring seven from 12 matches on the right.

As per Sofascore, the 27-year-old gem has started 12 times in the 2023/24 Bundesliga, incredibly taking 3.1 shots and 3.6 key passes per game, completing 83% of his passes and averaging 3.3 ball recoveries per match.

Should Liverpool decide to further discussions to secure his signature in the near future, he will likely be used on the right, in the place of Salah, which could be the beginning of a fruitful partnership with Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Imagine Leroy Sane & Trent Alexander-Arnold

Sane’s ability to use his pace to bypass opponents is one of his biggest, and most innate, skills, but he has sharpened his creativity and technicality to a fine point over recent campaigns and could now feasibly succeed Salah in Liverpool’s attack.