LONDON: Without all the injuries, perhaps Liverpool would not be surrendering the Premier League title so easily to Manchester City.

Liverpool’s 3-0 victory over Arsenal on Saturday was a reminder of the quality that saw the champions still leading the standings in December before imploding. Now it is City 17 points in front of Manchester United after winning 2-0 at Leicester City.

It means the win at the Emirates Stadium, secured by Diogo Jota’s double and Mohamed Salah’s strike, only pushed Liverpool up to fifth place.

Catching Chelsea to qualify for the Champions League became more attainable in the final eight games of the season thanks to Thomas Tuchel’s 14-match unbeaten start as manager surprisingly ending. Chel­sea’s 5-2 loss to relegation-threatened West Bromwich Albion enabled Liverpool to close the gap on fourth to two points.

First place is out of sight with Liverpool 25 points behind City after winning the title by 18 points last season.

While Arsenal seem set for a midtable finish, Liverpool can look up again.

Jurgen Klopp’s men looked more like their old selves in a dominant display that got its reward thanks to three goals in 18 second-half minutes.

Trent Alexander-Arnold was overlooked for the recent England World

Cup qualifiers, but he provided a reminder of his enduring value to Liverpool at least.

It was the right back’s cross that substitute Diogo Jota headed past Arsenal goalkeeper Bernd Leno in the 64th minute at the Emirates Stadium.

Mohamed Salah cleverly prodded the ball between the legs of Leno for the second before Jota struck again in the 82nd minute with his sixth goal in four games for club and country.

Should Liverpool find a way into fourth, the six-time European champions won’t be relying on winning the Champions League to qualify for next season’s competition. Real Madrid await in the quarter-finals next week.

“We need to show that we really fight for it,” Liverpool manager Klopp said. “If we defend like this tonight, then we are difficult to break down. If we are difficult to break down, we have a good basis to play good football and thats what we had tonight and thats why it was so important.”

After not scoring in his opening 39 league games for City, backup left back Benjamin Mendy has now scored twice in his last six as Pep Guardiola’s side closes in on a third title in four seasons.

Mendy cleverly eluded Marc Albrighton in the Leicester penalty area before curling a fine finish into the far corner with his weaker right foot in the 58th minute at the King Power.

A defence-splitting throug­hball from Kevin De Bruyne created City’s second. Gabriel Jesus passed to Raheem Sterling, who returned the ball for the forward to finish rather than shooting himself.

“I am here to provide for the team, De Bruyne said. “If I can set my team-mates up and they finish it then I am happy. It is one more win and it is good to get into the rhythm.”

City, chasing an unprecedented quadruple, will go into their Champions League quarter-final first leg against Borussia Dortmund on Tuesday in confident mood after avenging the 5-2 thrashing they suffered against Leicester in September.

It is a big step to winning the Premier League,” Guardiola said. The Premier League is the nicest competition to win. It is 11 months and it is so tough. We are close.”

Leicester missed a chance to dislodge United from second but were helped out by Chelsea losing to West Brom as the 2016 champions pursue qualification for the Champions League for the first time since then.

Published in Dawn, April 5th, 2021