Liverpool’s hopes of winning the title are being minimised by manager Andoni Iraola, who has told his players to stay level-headed despite a superb five-game winning run heading into Sunday’s Premier League clash with Arsenal at Anfield.
Liverpool have returned to good form since they were beaten 3-0 by Manchester City in October, picking up the pace with five wins in a row in three competitions. They are last on the table in the League Cup and made use of their own good form to qualify for the quarter-finals in their clash with Chelsea on Wednesday.
But Iraola feels it’s still too early to talk about a championship goal, though, especially with the season still early and important games still to come.
The Liverpool manager on Friday, speaking to reporters, reiterated his point, saying that the team must play one game at a time and not let the league table get in the way.
He said a definitive view on the title race would only start to become clearer at about the halfway point of the campaign, when teams have played head-to-head at home and away or played their first round of head-to-head matches.
Iraola admitted that fans had every right to have hopes of winning the Premier League, but said he was more concerned with improving the club’s performances and consistency.
Liverpool sit four points back of league leaders Arsenal and, as such, will seek to bounce back on Sunday. The Spaniard has also played well against Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta with a win streak of three of four matches under him against the Gunners.
However, Iraola cautioned against drawing a conclusion from the previous match, particularly as Arsenal come into the match with the sole intention of scoring first at Anfield since 2012.
