Joseph O’Brien makes owner’s day with biggest win in Boxing Day showpiece​

LIVERPOOL, England — Whisper it quietly, but on the terraces of Anfield, they are starting to believe. In the closing minutes of Liverpool‘s 3-1 victory over strugglers Leicester City, cries of “Liverpool, top of the league” could be heard echoing from the Kop, and the sense that Arne Slot’s side are on course to achieve something special this season is growing.

Ahead of kick-off, highlights of the last Boxing Day meeting between these two sides were broadcast on the screens outside the stadium. Liverpool’s dominance on that occasion in 2019 was such that Jürgen Klopp would later name the game as his team’s greatest-ever Premier League performance, with two goals from Roberto Firmino and a goal from James Milner and Trent Alexander-Arnold, respectively, helping the Reds to a resounding 4-0 win at the King Power Stadium.

That victory saw Liverpool move 13 points clear at the top of the table — with Leicester at the time their closest challengers — and irrefutably marked Klopp’s side out as champions-elect. By the time Premier League football was halted due to the coronavirus pandemic in mid-March 2020, Liverpool had a 25-point lead at the summit, with just one defeat and one draw in 27 league games.

For all of their brilliance, Slot’s side have not quite matched those heady heights this term, but the inconsistency of their rivals means they do not have to. Unlike in previous seasons when the relentlessness of Manchester City has necessitated near-perfection from any pretender to their crown, it is Liverpool who are setting the pace in this title race.

City’s 1-1 draw with Everton on Thursday afternoon left Pep Guardiola’s side 11 points adrift of the top spot, having played two games more than Slot’s side. Chelsea‘s last-gasp defeat to Fulham later in the afternoon presented Liverpool with a further opportunity to establish themselves as title favourites.

It was an opportunity they grabbed, if not quite with both hands, then at least with enough conviction to indicate that they are very much the team to beat at the moment, both domestically and in Europe, with victory moving them seven points clear at the top of the table with a game in hand.

Leicester are admittedly not as formidable a foe as they were in 2019. They had won just one game in 10 heading into Thursday night’s clash on Merseyside and had not won at Liverpool’s home stadium since March 2000.

Still, Slot had acknowledged the perils of underestimating any Premier League opponent in his pre-match news conference and his words looked to be proving prophetic when Jordan Ayew fired Leicester in front inside six minutes. The goal came massively against the run of play, with Mohamed Salah having seen an effort crash off the post only minutes earlier, but it was a smart finish from Leicester’s No. 18, who held off the attentions of Andy Robertson to turn and slot coolly past Alisson Becker after a fine run down the left by Stephy Mavididi.

Liverpool continued to rack up the chances as they pursued an equaliser, with first Robertson and then Salah hitting the woodwork. But Slot’s side seemed to lack the attacking fluency they had exhibited in abundance in their swashbuckling win over Tottenham at the weekend, while Leicester continued to threaten on the break.

However, one thing Liverpool are becoming increasingly adept at under Slot is finding ways to win, and this time it fell to Cody Gakpo to set the wheels in motion for a comeback. The Dutchman curled home a sublime effort from distance to restore parity on the stroke of half-time.

If the best time to score is just before the break, then finding the back of the net shortly after the restart must surely come a close second, and that is precisely what Liverpool did, taking the lead through Curtis Jones just four minutes into the second half. The midfielder applied the finishing touch to a spell of intense pressure from the hosts, diverting the ball past Premier League debutant Jakub Stolarczyk after a drilled pass from Alexis Mac Allister.

After the goal was confirmed following a lengthy check from the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), Liverpool’s celebrations could begin in earnest. The Kop struck up a rousing chorus of the carol ‘O Come All Ye Faithful,’ calling on the watching world to “come and behold” Slot’s side.

Such adulation is fast becoming the soundtrack to Liverpool’s season. The hosts thought they had made it 3-1 when Gakpo swept home from a deflected Salah cutback, but more protracted scrutiny from VAR resulted in Darwin Núñez — who endured another difficult evening — being ruled offside in the build-up.

Just when it looked as if Liverpool could be set for a nervy end to the match, Salah curled in his 19th goal of the season to add yet further gloss to what has already been a mesmeric individual campaign. The importance of ensuring that he stays at Anfield beyond the expiration of his contract next summer seems to intensify with every passing week.

At the full-time whistle, Slot’s celebrations were understated, and the Liverpool boss was quick to stress the importance of remaining grounded, even as his team’s title march gathers pace.

“Bit of a boring answer and as a manager you go game by game — you know how many games you have to play,” the Dutchman said after the game when asked if his side are in pole position to win the league.

“So many teams have so much quality. If this happened in the Eredivisie, I would say OK that is true.”

While Liverpool fans know only too well that being top of the table at Christmas doesn’t always translate into silverware in the Spring, it is hard to escape the feeling that yielding the club’s 20th league title is a feasible prospect this term.

Slot’s side were not at their best against Leicester but, as they came through yet another test in the heavy Merseyside fog on Boxing Day, their status as title favourites looks more clear than ever.