Title Race

[Vermilion]

can't believe this stage of the season we are in it

i'm still not sure we can do it but we will defo fight all the way and who knows. Stranger things have happened.

We have to beat Chelsea and City at home - win those games and we will the league

i'd love if it we can just keep fighting/pushing all the way and then be a situation where come the last 3 games, 4th is guaranteed and we are say 3 or 4 points of the top so still in with a chance and the other two (being city/chelsea) are still going for other things like europe so the pressure is all piled on them

I will really only start to believe if we are where we are with 3 or 4 games to go.

But yeah it's been an incredible season so far already.

[Fosterbloke]

I'm still worried about ****ing up 4th place let alone winning the league but like in all movie scenes set many storeys above the ground, the best advice is to not look down!

[Robbie-9-Fowler]

If we beat United then it is 100% on and we can completely forget about falling out of the top 4 IMO but Chelsea will need to lose at Anfield and probably draw 2 out of the games against Spurs/Arsenal/Swansea for us to have any kind of chance.

[Fosterbloke]

Plus City are two points behind with two games in hand.

[Paddy]

Arsenal are ****ed. Unbelievably hard run of fixtures

[Mostar]

Exactly how I feel. But win at Old Trafford and I wont be able to stop thinking about the league. I might as well apply for leave at work till May.

That game imo will define if we will be chasing the title or we'll need to settle for CL spot race.

Either way we are doing better than I ever expected us to do this season.

As it stands we are at 59 points and we'll need 15-16 points in last 10 to get ourselves Champions League football next year, which is certainly achievable.

That in itself would be some accomplishment, given our squad vs other top 6 teams.

[baitman]

winning at old toilet is points for the CL place.
winning against arse and the plazzys are six pointers and games that will be pivotal if we are going to do something monumental

[SB]

Every game is a must win from here on in. Simple as that really.

[Le Chef]

I'd certainly back us to score in every game from now until the end of the seasons, if we can tighten up at the back I think we can continue the run.

[SB]

I'd certainly back us to score in every game from now until the end of the seasons, if we can tighten up at the back I think we can continue the run.

The Chavs at our place will be hard to break down if Maureen decides to park the bus.

[cream]

The Chavs at our place will be hard to break down if Maureen decides to park the bus.

These guys don't agree

[SB]

These guys don't agree

[ATTACH]2607[/ATTACH]

Great photo. The smiling assassins.

[Fosterbloke]

Ferdinand, Vidic, Cleverley... Hahahaha

[Yozza]

We don't want United, City and Chelsea winning everything! Here's 10 reasons why we should ALL want Liverpool to win title

Liverpool battling City, Arsenal and Chelsea for Premier League title

• Brendan Rodgers' tactics have been the best in the top flight this season
• It would be refreshing to see Reds win for the first time since 1990
• They are an advert for fine British talent with players like Raheem Sterling
• It would be great to see Everton play against Liverpool in Champions League

By ADRIAN COCKFACE DURHAM

Liverpool have dragged themselves back in to the Barclays Premier League title race with some rampant displays of late.

Here, Sportsmail's Adrian Durham tells us why we should rally behind Brendan Rodgers' team in their bid to lift the league trophy for the first time since 1990.

10 – Liverpool are the only title contenders who have yet to win the Premier League since it began in 1992. Someone new would be refreshing and welcome. Manchester City emerged because of Sheik Mansour’s millions, same with Chelsea and Roman Abramovich. If Liverpool emerge as a title-winning force they will have done it with tactics and brilliant football, more than money.

9 – Liverpool provide several examples of how the crucial thing in life is not the mistakes we all make, but how we respond to those mistakes.

Brendan Rodgers failed at Reading, he was sacked after five wins in 21 games and threatened with relegation. But he rebuilt himself as a manager and bounced back.

Jordan Henderson is also worth a mention here. He received heavy criticism after signing for Liverpool. The £20million price tag didn’t help. But he stayed strong, played his football and has come through it as a professional footballer who now commands respect for his conduct on and off the field.

8 – It would be a massive advertisement for coaching in this country. Brendan Rodgers is, of course, from Northern Ireland. But he learned his trade in the English game.
Twenty years ago he was combining coaching in the Reading Academy with working as assistant groundsman at the training ground (the head groundsman was Steve Kean!). Rodgers did the legwork, learned his trade, soaked up knowledge and look where he is now.

A lot of managers have been praised this season for showing tactical prowess but none can top what Rodgers has done. He’s changed formation from game-to-game and during games. But more impressive than that, he’s devised a system to allow good players to flourish and enjoy their football.

Tactically Rodgers has shown good results can be achieved by playing open and entertaining football. You might think that’s not so special or unique – other managers play good football and are doing as well as Liverpool. True.

But Rodgers is the only manager to play an expansive, tactically brave game at the same time as managing the high expectations at a club starting at such a low base. Had he shown fear, and been more cautious, Liverpool wouldn’t be so good to watch, and players like Luis Suarez wouldn’t want to hang around at the club.

To go from finishing seventh and 28 points behind the champions, to launching a title challenge at the same time as playing such an open entertaining game is the mark of tactical brilliance.

7 – The football Liverpool play is a joy to watch. They’ve hit some of the most spectacular passes of the season so far: Steven Gerrard’s breathtaking ball through to Daniel Sturridge for the Reds’ first goal in the 3-2 win at Fulham; Raheem Sterling’s stunning defence splitter for Sturridge’s opener in the 4-3 win against Swansea recently; Henderson’s back heel for Sturridge’s goal against Aston Villa; and Coutinho’s amazing ball through to Sturridge for the fourth when they blitzed Arsenal.

Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool are all about beautiful passing, fluid movement and great finishing. Yes there’s some bad defending, but how can a team with a policy of scoring more than the opposition – no matter how many the opposition score – be criticised? That’s entertainment.

6 – Anfield will reignite fans’ passion at the very top of the game if Liverpool win the title. Some stadiums are quiet and soulless but not Anfield. If the Premier League champions have fans behind them showing true emotion to encourage their team then others will surely follow suit. Even Old Trafford can be a quiet place.

Just look at Liverpool’s home record since Rodgers took over – the fans have played a major part.

5 – They have shown other clubs who aren’t in the Champions League annually that you don’t have to sell your best players to the so-called bigger boys. Suarez looked all set to leave last summer but Liverpool and John W. Henry dug their heels in and kept their man. Suarez certainly isn’t regretting that decision to stay and sign a new contract now.

4 – If Liverpool win the title, that will motivate Everton even more. And if both Merseyside clubs are fighting hard for success then football in this country will be in a very healthy place. The bulk of my football education happened in the 1980s when Everton and Liverpool took it in turns to be the kings of English football. Both played fantastic football, and had fantastic success at home and abroad.

I can’t wait for that rivalry to be resumed at the very top level of the game. Imagine Everton taking on Liverpool home and away in a Champions League semi-final. If you love football you would just salivate at that possibility. If Liverpool win the title, the pressure will be on Everton and Roberto Martinez to raise their game. This country needs both clubs to be successful.

3 – Liverpool is historically one of England’s finest clubs. They are known globally, they have a rich history of success in Europe that is recognised across the world of football. They belong in the elite. They SHOULD be back competing with the very best in Europe. That’s where Liverpool Football Club belongs. Anyone who knows their football history would agree. 5 European Cups – no English side can match that.

2 – Steven Gerrard deserves to be a title-winning captain. He’s one of the finest players this country has ever produced: he’s got character, strength to go with his ability and quality. He’s a winner – he showed that in 2005. But he’s not had enough players around him to secure the Premier League title he so richly deserves.

Gerrard has stayed at Liverpool his whole career with the dream of winning the title – he could have gone anywhere but didn’t. If you’ve read his autobiography you’ll know how he talks time and time again about the 'love affair' he has with Liverpool FC. And the devastation he felt when he thought the club didn’t want him to stay in the aftermath of the triumph in Istanbul.
What a reward it would be for Gerrard’s loyalty if they finally won the Premier League title this season.

1 – Liverpool Football Club have nurtured a core of brilliant young English players. Teenager Sterling looks a certainty to go to the World Cup in my view. Why would Roy Hodgson leave such a talent at home?

He’s playing well, scoring and making goals, he’s a game-changer, and a potential match-winner. A year ago people were suggesting he needed a loan spell in the Championship. The improvement has been amazing. He has to be a serious contender for Young Player of the Year.

Another World Cup certainty in my opinion has to be Henderson. Rodgers has trusted him and he has emerged as a gifted midfielder who can pass the ball and has a goal in him.
Sturridge was a goal machine waiting to explode. City and Chelsea held him back – but at Liverpool he has catapulted himself onto the big stage in a massive way. 28 goals in 29 Premier League starts is a world-class statistic.

Jon Flanagan has seized his chance at full back. Fans of most clubs love a local lad to come through the ranks and make it in the first team. Liverpool have produced legends in recent years. Flanagan has brought dynamism to the team, and I am stunned that neither Roy Hodgson nor Gareth Southgate saw fit to pick him for international duty this week. It’s a huge oversight, and when I interviewed him on Monday Flanagan admitted he was disappointed.

Liverpool are on course to contribute Sturridge, Henderson and Sterling to the World Cup cause this summer. And the England captain as well. That’s impressive.
If the title goes to Anfield it’s a victory for Liverpool. But it’s also a victory for football, and for England.

[Pablo]

That's a surprisingly inspiring article from Adrian Durham