UNUSUAL FACE-OFF
MALAYSIA’S pundits say Manchester City but the computer says Liverpool.
THE boffins, who base their work on statistics and analyses, have come up with some good news for Liverpool fans from Anfield to Malaysia.
Based on their computerised findings, the Reds should pip Manchester City for the Premier League title by the time the 20182019 season ends on May 19.
Both City and Liverpool have nine more league matches remaining but Pep Guardiola’s men are sitting uncomfortably on top of the table by just one point.
The computerised findings aside, two former M-League stars have predicted that City will finish ahead of Liverpool for the EPL crown. Two-time Golden Boot winner Scott Ollerenshaw and former national player Stanley Bernard are putting their money on City.
Ollerenshaw, 51, said: “Man City will win the league title simply because they seem to be in a more relaxed frame of mind and have timed their form perfectly for the run-in.
“Furthermore, their better team depth (compared to Liverpool) will be crucial over the next two months.
“I can’t help but think that Liverpool want the title too much and suddenly their flowing style, which has served them so well, is fluttering. Their players look nervous as the tensions inhibit their performances.
“Liverpool’s most important person is manager Jurgen Klopp. Can he get the players in a more relaxed state of mind that allows them to play in a free spirited way?
“The pressure of not winning the league title in a quarter of a century is clearly taking its toll (on Liverpool).”
Ollerenshaw said City’s key players in the push for the league crown are Raheem Sterling, Aguero and Kevin de Bruyne while Liverpool’s main weapons are Salah, Sadio Mane, Jordan Henderson and Virgil Van Dijk.
Stanley, 32, who is a TV pundit, has questioned Liverpool’s mental toughness in dealing with their last nine games.
And central to it all is the form of Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah whose consistency is of concern to fans of the Reds despite the Egyptian just one goal behind City’s Sergio Aguero (18) in the top scorers’ chart.
“Salah is inconsistent. Liverpool have 11 to 13 great players but City have got that luxury of a bigger squad (of great players to go through March-May,” added Stanley.
He stressed that City’s biggest weapon is 30-year-old Argentine striker Aguero who has not slowed down since the Citizens won the league title in 2012.
“Like what (Lionel) Messi and (Cristiano) Ronaldo have done over the past years have been outstanding but quietly there is another person doing the same (Aguero).
“He scored Man City’s winning goal against Queens Park Rangers that got them the title in 2012. In 2019, he’s leading City to the title again and it’s a very hard thing to do so, and very few have done that.”
Fifa Ballon d’Or juror and former TV pundit Rizal Hashim has picked City to win the EPL because they have the right mentality for the final stretch while Liverpool might crack under pressure.
At the other end, the Guardian newspaper has taken a scientific approach on the two-horse race with its statistical analyses favouring Liverpool.
Looking at the remaining fixtures and where points could be dropped, the data shows that Liverpool have the easier run-in.
And City’s toughest match will come in the away fixture against neighbours Manchester United on April 24.
The scientific approach shows that the average table position of the teams Liverpool have yet to play is 13.33 while City are scheduled to meet teams with an average position of 11.89.
The Guardian report says this may not sound like a big difference but bear in mind that Liverpool have more home games than City (55.5% to 44.4% or, in simpler terms, one more) and that Liverpool picked up 25 points against the opponents they have left to play this season when they first met during this campaign compared with 21 for City, and a pattern emerges.
Five of Liverpool’s remaining nine games are against the worst five teams in the league according to the current table: Huddersfield, Fulham, Cardiff, Southampton and Burnley.
But as M-League coaches tend to say, in football, anything is possible. Despite facts and figures, there are always unforeseen factors of injuries, controversial refereeing, and effects of other competitions like the Champions League.