Former Liverpool striker John Aldridge has insisted that the Reds can’t afford to lose to Manchester United as he believes that their Premier League title hopes could be over.
The 59-year-old played for Liverpool between 1986 and 1990, winning the old First Division title as well as an FA Cup and two Charity Shields.
Always keen to speak out on the Merseyside giants, he is convinced that if Liverpool lose to United on October 14 after the international break, then that will be their hopes of winning the title over.
Should their bitter rivals win at Anfield, that would open up a 10-point gap between them, with Man Utd and Man City currently setting the pace at the top of the table and Aldridge doesn’t see a way back from that kind of deficit.
“I’m not Jose Mourinho’s biggest fan for a variety of reasons,” Aldridge explained to the Irish Independent. “But he gets his teams winning if you give him time and United are ready to push for the title.
“It may still be too early to write off teams like Chelsea and Tottenham, but if United were to win at Anfield and open up a ten-point lead over Klopp’s side, the game would already be up for Liverpool.
“That would be very hard to take for a team that continues to make the same mistakes week-after-week, with Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Newcastle the latest example of the frustrating story we watch every time they take to the field now.”
Aldridge isn’t the first and he certainly won’t be the last Liverpool fan or pundit to express frustration over the defensive problems at the club.
Liverpool have conceded 12 goals in seven league games so far this season, and while they can look lethal from an attacking perspective, if they can’t fix the problems at the back then they will more than likely continue to fall short over the course of a gruelling campaign against top opposition.