There is no doubt, Liverpool are in white-hot form this season. Looking at the Premier League table, they are top of the pile with half of the season gone and will stay on their perch by Christmas, sitting comfortably at 49 points, ten points clear of nearest rivals Leicester City. For some, that is a clear signal that the Merseyside Reds are about to march on to their first-ever Premier League title. But looking at the annals of history, that path to glory may not be as simple and easy.
Indeed, the Anfield outfit had been in this situation before. In fact, during the Premier League era, they have been here four other times. In those other times, the club’s fans believed the title was theirs. But come the end of the season, despite bets placed on betting24.dk, not a league trophy was in sight. Here are the four other times Liverpool were top of the Premier League table at Christmas but failed to win the title come the end of the season.
1. 1996/97 season
Liverpool were on fire during the first half of the season. Goals from the likes of iconic striker Robbie Fowler made sure the Merseyside Reds only lost one of their first ten games. Indeed, he would score 18 goals that season. Stan Collymore and Steve McManaman would contribute 19 more. But for all their precision in front of goal, such was their haphazardness in defence. The Reds conceded 37 goals that season, turning wins into draws and losses and points dropped. True enough, Liverpool only won four of their last ten games that season – contributing to their failure to capture the Premier League crown.
2. 2008/09 season
The 2008/09 campaign was a season where striker Fernando Torres shined. Under the tutelage of then manager Rafael Benitez, the centre-forward would go on to score 14 goals. This formed certainly helped the reds in the first half of the campaign and Liverpool would go top at Christmas. But a winless run in January followed by a shock loss to relegation strugglers Middlesborough meant that that Anfield would drop the ball and pave the way for their bitter rivals Manchester United to eventually win the league title that season.
3. 2008/09 season
Many thought manager Brendan Rodgers was the one who would engineer Liverpool’s revival from obscurity back to Premier League glory once again when the Reds went top on Christmas in 2008. All the signs were simply there, especially with then striker Luis Suarez, who was in fiery form. The next day come boxing day, Liverpool lost to eventual league champions Manchester City. The following week, they would lose to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge. And in that infamous return fixture at home in front of the Anfield faithful, captain Steven Gerrard suffered the infamous slip which lead to their loss against the blues as they kissed the title goodbye.
4. 2018/19 season
This was a season nobody could fault Liverpool for losing the title in. They did everything right. They scored goals. They kept their defences tight. They earned their highest-record points haul in the Premier League era. They only lost once, three less matches lost than eventual winners Manchester City. And yet, Jurgen Klopp’s side still lost, with Manchester City edging them over with just a point in difference.
With the memory still fresh, fans may be forgiven for being warier about being too carried away this season. But the signs are there. Liverpool are on a 17-game unbeaten run in the league, having won 16 of those matches. They are sauntering through every opposition at the moment across all competitions. It appears Klopp already has Liverpool primed and ready to clinch the title. But will they come the end of the season? That, of course, is yet to be seen.