Gary Lineker gives ‘honest’ verdict on Premier League title race as Arsenal and Chelsea chase Liverpool

Ex-England striker Gary Lineker discussing the Premier League title race (Picture: YouTube)

Gary Lineker has delivered his ‘honest’ verdict on the Premier League title race as Arsenal and Chelsea attempt to catch Liverpool.

Liverpool are eight points clear of their nearest rival going into the New Year, having won 14 of their 18 league games under new Anfield boss Arne Slot.

There were questions over how Liverpool would fare following the departure of legendary manager Jurgen Klopp but Slot has taken the Reds to another level, the Merseyside club sitting top of the revamped Champions League as well as the Premier League.

Liverpool’s closest rival midway through the season is surprisingly Nottingham Forest, who have defied expectations to emerge as genuine top-four contenders, amassing 37 points in 19 games.

That incredible run of form has left Forest one point ahead of Arsenal, runners-up in the Premier League for the past two seasons, and much-improved Chelsea.

Arsenal have pushed Manchester City desperately close in recent years butthe title could continue to evade Mikel Arteta despite City’s remarkable drop-off.

Chelsea, meanwhile, were tipped to struggle this season by many pundits but have in fact been one of the best and most exciting teams in England, though a wobble over Christmas has seen them lose ground on their title rivals.

West Ham United FC v Liverpool FC - Premier League
Liverpool thrashed West Ham on Sunday (Picture: Getty)

Discussing the Premier League title race after Liverpool thrashed West Ham 5-0 on Sunday, ex-England striker Lineker said on The Rest is Football podcast: ‘They were very impressive again.

‘They’ve got a big lead now. Nottingham Forest are second which is an extraordinary effort.

‘I honestly can’t see anyone getting near Liverpool now, can you? They’re unstoppable now I think.’

Premier League legend Alan Shearer agreed with Lineker’s assessment of the title race, adding: ‘Liverpool have been brilliant, they’re so strong in every position. They’ve got so many options.

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
browser that
supports HTML5
video

Up Next

‘They’re really, really strong and it’s hard to look at anyone else but Liverpool. It’s theirs to chuck away now.’

Liverpool made light work of West Ham on Sunday afternoon and were 3-0 up at half-time before going on to win by five.

Asked about his team’s performance in east London, Slot said: ‘It’s the way I would like to see us play an away game.

‘I think it’s always, especially in the Premier League, the defence come with a lot. There’s a lot of fans in every stadium we play.

Arsenal FC v FK Bodo/Glimt: Group A - UEFA Europa League
Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal are trying to reel in Liverpool (Picture: Getty)

‘The stadium is always sold out if Liverpool comes. They don’t need much to cheer for if Liverpool comes in because if they already have an attack, or a corner kick, the fans are already cheering, so then you have to kill that momentum as much as you can and not give away anything.

‘I think there was only two, three or four minutes where Curtis [Jones] lost the ball, Mo lost the ball and then we conceded a corner, which probably wasn’t a corner, where the fans were a bit behind West Ham.

‘For the rest, I think because we were so dominant we could manage West Ham but also the crowd.

‘West Ham has done really well before we faced them today. They were in a good mood but normally West Ham doesn’t compete for winning the league.

‘I think you have to always take this into account. If you look at how happy you are with a performance; away games are always difficult in the Premier League.

‘Especially here, I think last season it was 2-2, if I remember correctly. It’s not an easy place to go to, so then to perform the way we did is pleasing to see.’

Premier League leaders Liverpool return to action on January 5 against struggling Manchester United, before facing Tottenham for a place in the Carabao Cup final.

For more stories like this, check our sport page.

Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on FacebookTwitter and Instagram.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *