Premier League has issues to resolve

PREMIER League football is set to return on June 17 after a three-month coronavirus-enforced absence.

There are a whole host of issues that will need to be sorted out, but nothing realistically will stop Liverpool from being crowned English champions for the first time in 30 years.

Liverpool was 25 points clear of Manchester City and just two wins away from becoming English champions for the first time since 1990 when the league was suspended in March.

But while COVID-19 may have delayed the Reds’ title party, nobody seriously believes it is not going to happen.

Two more wins would make it mathematically impossible for City to catch Liverpool, but the Reds could triumph by winning their first game if City loses at home to Arsenal on June 17.

Jurgen Klopp’s men can also break two of City’s most cherished records — they need 19 points from the remaining 27 to beat the Manchester club’s total of 100 points from the 2017/18 season and they could also better City’s record title-winning margin of 19 points from the same campaign.

Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson lifted the Champions League trophy in a packed stadium in Madrid last June but is preparing for a different experience this year.

“Of course it would feel different because if you win any trophy and receive it without any fans there, it would be pretty strange,” he said.

Intriguingly, the battle for the top four in the Champions League might instead be a battle for the top five.

As it stands, Liverpool is assured a place and the other three top-four places are currently occupied by Manchester City, Leicester and Chelsea.

But things are set to get interesting given City cannot compete in Europe’s top club competition for the next two seasons after the club was banned for financial fair play breaches.