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Arne Slot believes that Liverpool can secure a significant advantage over Arsenal in their next two games and that Anfield is then primed to shape the destiny of the title race.
The league leaders would establish a 10-point lead over Mikel Arteta’s challengers with victory at Aston Villa on Wednesday. That awkward away assignment is followed by a visit to Manchester City on Sunday. Arsenal took four points from their trips to Villa Park and the Etihad Stadium and Slot believes Liverpool’s position will be even stronger if they equal or better that return. Failing that, the head coach will take consolation in the Anfield factor, with seven of his team’s final 11 league games at home.
Slot said: “As a manager you never think: ‘After 25 games how many points will we be clear or behind?’ You only think about winning as many games as you can and implementing a certain playing style to get as many wins as you can. You never know how other teams will do and the fixture list also decides how things will work out.
“These two games we are going to play now have already been played by Arsenal – Villa away and City away. Then we can make a difference in the upcoming two games. If not, then we are on equal terms because we have played a lot of similar games and there are still 11 games to go. The positive thing is that, after these two games, we’ve got seven home games and four away. And we all know how much Anfield can help us.”
Slot admitted that Liverpool’s performance level had dipped in the past two league outings, against Wolves and Everton. However, he insisted that was a consequence of allowing David Moyes’s team “to play their pattern” in the Merseyside derby and the knock-on emotional effect of James Tarkowski’s 98th-minute equaliser. Slot suggested that four points from two below-par displays could prove crucial.
Asked whether Liverpool were in a difficult moment, the manager said: “Was it one and a half weeks ago that we completely outplayed Spurs? I don’t count Plymouth. I agree the last two performances were not the same level we had at West Ham away or Tottenham at home but are we Tottenham 4-0 win at home or are we the Everton team? I think we are somewhere in between.
“If there’s any experience I’ve learned of winning a league title [with Feyenoord] it is that, if there are 38 games to be played, you don’t expect to play fantastic football 38 times. If you are a very good team and a special team you play 20-25 very good games, a few mediocre ones and you play a few very bad ones.
“But it is more about the results in the mediocre or bad ones than the 20-25 because they are ones you will probably win.”
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Cody Gakpo, who missed Sunday’s win against Wolves, will again be absent through injury tonight but he could be in contention to face City.
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