Crystal clear, another blip and it’s over JOHN ALDRIDGE

ATALANTA ANNIHILATION AT ANFIELD MEANS REPONSE MUST BE TO SACK PALACE

LIVERPOOL’S hopes of ending the season on a high could come crashing down if they fail to beat Crystal Palace at Anfield today.

I can’t believe how quickly the mood has changed around this team after what can only be described as a disastrous Europa League defeat against Atalanta on Thursday night.

The 2-2 draw at Manchester United last Sunday was a setback for Liverpool’s title hopes, but none of us saw the performance and the 3-0 result against Atalanta coming.

I’ve often said in my Sunday World column that the Anfield factor will carry Liverpool through games when they are not at their best, so to see them lose so heavily on a strange night was a massive shock to the system.

You can call it a freak result if you like, but Atalanta deployed tactics Liverpool couldn’t cope with and fully deserved their win.

Man-marking Liverpool’s midfield was their plan to disrupt the flow of Jurgen Klopp’s team and it was pretty alarming how effective that approach was.

TIMING

Liverpool didn’t get out of first gear and the wave of emotion that has long been the norm for European nights at Anfield was missing.

That, in part, was due to the fans making a protest against the rise in ticket prices, and I have to say, I think the timing of that protest was wrong.

We were probably all a little guilty of taking Atalanta for granted and it felt like the players and fans also fell into that trap.

The supporters opted not to bring flags to The Kop for this game to highlight their frustration at the ticket price decision and that contributed to the lack of atmosphere around the stadium.

You could see Klopp trying to get the fans to raise the volume when he knew his team was in trouble, but the backing didn’t come and his players all looked so flat. Kostas Tsimikas came back into the team and looked well off the pace after his time on the sidelines and Ibrahima Konaté also looked like he was struggling.

Harvey Elliott was taken off at half-time after struggling in the wide attacking role once again and it was hard to find any player who performed at the level we know they can.

It was almost as if everyone in the stadium and Liverpool fans around the world were already thinking about how brilliant it was going to be to take over Dublin for the final next month, yet sport doesn’t work like that.

Atalanta are not a great team, but they were a lot better than Liverpool, and unless the Reds grab an early goal in Italy next week, the tie is over.

It will be interesting to see how Atalanta handle the second leg because they will probably be keen to hang on to what they have got and that mindset is dangerous.

ATTACK

I don’t like to think about the night we lost the league to Arsenal when all we had to do was avoid a 2-0 defeat at Anfield, but your mindset can change when you don’t feel the need to attack. The likelihood is Liverpool’s Europa League hopes will end in Italy next Thursday and the worry must be that their Premier League challenge may also be over by then as well.

Klopp needs a response from his players against Crystal Palace today because they will be arriving at Anfield thinking they have a chance against a Liverpool side that must be a little groggy after such a heavy beating.

Yet the reality is that anything less than seven straight Premier League wins between now and then ends their title hopes.

When I look at Manchester City’s run-in, it leads me back to the conclusion that Pep Guardiola’s champions are the favourites to get over the winning line once again.

I watched City’s Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid on Tuesday night and it was a sensational game.

As I’ve said many times in this column, I have my reservations about how City have navigated the Financial Fair Play rules to get to the position of dominance they are now in.

Yet you have to hand it to Guardiola for taking advantage of the situation he walked into at City and building such a fantastic team.

Assuming City win every Premier League game on their schedule, Arsenal and Liverpool also need to pick up maximum points to have any chance of finishing the season as champions.

Arsenal have some tricky games coming up, with today’s match against Villa and the away trip to Tottenham backed up by a game against Manchester United at Old Trafford.

As for Liverpool, I would expect a win against Crystal Palace at Anfield today. However, that clash will be followed by three tricky matches in the Premier League.

If Liverpool beat Fulham, Everton and West Ham away from home, they will keep their title hopes alive heading into challenging games against top-four contenders Tottenham and Aston Villa.

All of this analysis will be irrelevant, however, if Liverpool perform as they did against Atalanta on Thursday night.

You need to go back eight games to the start of March to find a match where Liverpool kept a clean sheet, and when you are conceding this often, it is hard to see how they can finish this season picking up any more silverware.

Klopp needs to get his strongest and most experienced players on the pitch this afternoon as this season is in danger of imploding unless Liverpool clear their heads and get back to winning ways.