LONDON: Liverpool manager Arne Slot has enjoyed a record-breaking start to his tenure at Anfield but has been measured in his response as he says they have yet to face a top side, although that is all about to change with the visit of in-form Chelsea.

Dutchman Slot, the first Liverpool manager to win nine of his first 10 games in charge, must now steer the leaders through a tough schedule, with a gruelling run of 10 games in three competitions that could go a long way to shaping their season.

Liverpool have 18 points after seven games, having scored 13 goals and conceded two, to stand a point ahead of Manchester City and Arsenal, while Chelsea are fourth on 14.

“I looked at the league table and ‘OK, which teams did we face until now and which position are they? Are they in the top half or the bottom?’” Slot said of the schedule so far. “There are a lot of difficult teams we still have to face ... let’s see where we are then when it comes to conceding goals because maybe the fixture schedule has been ‘nice’ to us when you see the league table.”

Chelsea have won all three of their league games on the road this season by a combined score of 10-2.

Liverpool’s gruelling stretch of matches, which includes a trip to Arsenal on Oct 27 and the visit of Manchester City on Dec 1, is lousy timing considering first-choice goalkeeper Alisson is expected to miss most of it.

The Brazilian is set to be sidelined with a hamstring injury until the league game at Southampton on Nov. 24.

Slot, however, is confident his number two, Ireland international Caoimhin Kelleher, can fill in seamlessly.

“Alisson is our clear number one,” the 46-year-old Dutchman said. “[He is] the best goalkeeper in the world so it’s always a blow when he gets injured. But in almost every position we have a second option that is also really good. Caoimhin Kelleher has already shown that.”

Fourth-placed Chelsea, undefeated in their past seven games in all competitions, are just four points behind Liverpool as new manager Enzo Maresca earns praise for quietly resetting the culture at Stamford Bridge.

While Chelsea co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali are reportedly jousting for control of the club behind the scenes, Maresca has taken a bloated squad that underachieved for the past two years and turned them into top-four contenders.

For both Maresca and Slot, their clash at Anfield will provide a clearer picture of just what can be achieved this season.

Arsenal visit Bournemouth on Saturday with questions around the fitness of Bukayo Saka, who started England’s Nations League game against Greece on Thursday but suffered a hamstring injury which saw him taken off early in the second half.

The winger travelled back to London for further assessment, missing England’s game away to Finland on Sunday.

Manchester City hope to have Kevin De Bruyne back for their trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday, with a hamstring problem having sidelined the midfielder for the past month.

Manager Pep Guardiola has said the injury was “not a big issue,” although De Bruyne did not feature in Belgium’s Nations League games after asking not to be called up.

PRESSURE MOUNTS ON TEN HAG

Elsewhere, beleaguered Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag cannot afford another flop from his troubled team when Brentford visit Old Trafford.

Ten Hag is fighting to avoid the sack after United’s worst start to a top-flight season since 1989/90.

Languishing in 14th place with only two wins from seven league matches, United are without a victory in their past five games in all competitions.

After United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe soun­ded out Thomas Tuchel over his potential interest in replacing Ten Hag after the end of last season, the Dutchman might have brea­thed a sigh of relief when the former Bayern Munich and Chelsea boss accepted an offer to come England’s new manager this week.

Although that removed one potential threat to Ten Hag’s position, it is unlikely to prevent Ratcliffe dismissing the 54-year-old if results do not improve drastically.

Brentford’s habit of scoring within seconds of kick-off this season makes them a serious danger to a team with United’s habit of shooting themselves in the foot.

And even if Ten Hag survives Brentford’s visit, Fenerbahce boss Jose Mourinho will surely relish the chance to add to his old club’s problems in Thursday’s Europa League tie in Turkey.

Assuming Ten Hag is still in charge by then, United finish a testing week with a trip to lowly West Ham, where defeat could well prove the final straw for the former Ajax boss.

At the other end of the table, Ipswich Town, Crystal Palace, Southampton and Wolves are still without a league win this season.

Ipswich have the best chance of ending that streak on Saturday when they host Everton, who are a point above them, while second-bottom Southampton welcome 15th-placed Leicester City to St Mary’s.

Palace, also in the relegation zone, travel to Nottingham Forest in search of their first victory.

Fixtures:

Saturday (1400 GMT unless stated): Tottenham Hotspur v West Ham United (1130), Fulham v Aston Villa, Ipswich Town v Everton, Manchester United v Brentford, Newcastle United v Brighton & Hove Albion, Southampton v Leicester City, Bournemouth v Arsenal (1630). Sunday: Wolverhampton Wanderers v Manchester City (1300), Liverpool v Chelsea (1530).

Monday: Nottingham Forest v Crystal Palace (1900).

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2024