They must be favorites
“They must be favorites,” said Liverpool, who are “perfect” in the Champions League.
Is Liverpool the clear favorite to win the Champions League after winning six straight games. Leading the league, and having “one of the world’s best keepers” back in the starting lineup?
With their victory over Girona on Tuesday, Arne Slot’s team has had an incredible start to the European season. Virtually avoiding the play-off round and guaranteeing a place in the Champions League last 16.
Rio Ferdinand, a former defender for Manchester United. Believes Liverpool has “crazy” momentum and “had to be” at the top of the form rankings.
Ferdinand warned that things may be quite different come April. But claimed the Reds “have all the make-up to be extremely successful” in an interview with TNT Sports.
“They must be the favorites right now in terms of form. But the trophy is not being given out yet,” he stated.
“So far, they have been flawless.
“He can now bench players like Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk for the final two games. They have already exhausted their steam from fighting on all fronts, but it is crucial to keep players as fresh as possible.
“What we can say is, Liverpool for anyone will be a very, very tough game this season in both the Premier League and the Champions League,” former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock continued on BBC Radio 5 Live.
With one game remaining, Liverpool leads the Premier League by four points and leads the Champions League standings after six games.
It was not meant to be this simple.
From under 5% to the favorites
Opta predicted Liverpool a 4.6% probability of winning the Champions League in September, before to the league phase’s opening game.
Six teams received larger percentages, such as Arsenal (6.3%) and Manchester City (24.9%).
Since then, however, Liverpool has had an incredible run in the competition.
Slot seemed at home at Anfield after being appointed to succeed the late great Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
The Dutchman is, in fact, the only manager to lead an English club to victory in each of his first six Champions League games. The former manager of Feyenoord has conceived of :
AC Milan 1-3 Liverpool
Liverpool 2-0 Bologna
RB Leipzig 0-1 Liverpool
Liverpool 4-0 Bayer Leverkusen
Liverpool 2-0 Real Madrid
Girona 0-1 Liverpool
Naturally, since then, the percentages have shifted.
Prior to this week’s schedule, the Reds were the clear favorites with a 20.7% chance of winning the tournament.
They also have a 51.3% chance of reaching the semi-finals, according to Opta.
“Incredible Alisson” and a sensational Salah
Alisson, who Slot referred to as “the best goalkeeper in the world” following the game, gave Liverpool a lift on Tuesday.
The Brazilian had not played since he pulled his hamstring during a victory against Crystal Palace on October 5th, but he made five saves in the first half to help the team extend their run without giving up in the tournament for nearly nine hours.
“We have a fantastic goalie,” Slot stated. Joked that the players might have given him so much work to test his level of fitness.
“I rather happy with the outcomes of all six games, if you ask me.
“Quite happy with how we performed in the five games. I am not at all happy with tonight’s performance.
Although he was somewhat to blame for Newcastle’s late equalizer in a 3-3 draw last Wednesday, stand-in goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher made an impression when he filled in.
Mohamed Salah, a forward who is leading the Reds to triumphs this season, is another player Liverpool can rely on.
This season, he is tied with Omar Marmoush of Eintracht Frankfurt for the most goals and assists in Europe’s top five divisions, with 28.
Including the four goals he scored in qualifying, the 32-year-old, whose contract expires this summer, is presently fiery in front of goal and became the 11th player to reach 50 goals in the Champions League.
The Egypt forward has 16 goals in 22 games across all competitions, including seven in his last six, after scoring a penalty against Girona on Tuesday.
Are Liverpool your Champions League favorites, then, with a forward on fire, a rock back at the back, and a manager having a fantastic start?