Man City have one overlooked “advantage” over Liverpool, according to Gary Neville
Gary Neville believes Manchester City playing their games before Liverpool gives the defending Premier League champions a significant advantage in this season’s title race.
Both clubs, with a handful of games left, are locked in a fascinating championship battle which is expected to go right down to the wire.
Who has the advantage in the PL title race? Five things to know…
- Liverpool are currently top of the Premier League, sitting two points ahead of Manchester City.
- City are defending champions and seeking to become the first club to successfully defend England’s top-flight championship since Manchester United in 2009.
- Man City can go a point ahead of the Reds if they beat Cardiff City at home on Wednesday.
- And Gary Neville believes the fixture list gives City a slight advantage over Liverpool.
- Liverpool were last English champions in 1990, finishing runners-up four times since.
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Liverpool, having played a game more than City, lead the Premier League on 79 points but City can leapfrog Jurgen Klopp’s men with victory over Cardiff City on Wednesday. It will hand them a single point advantage with six matches remaining.
Pep Guardiola’s side are the defending champions and will be looking to become the first club since Manchester United in 2009 to successfully defend their crown.
As for the Reds, their aim is to end a 29-year wait to be English champions once again, but going into some of their upcoming fixtures they will be chasing City’s results.
And Neville – who lifted no fewer than eight league titles with boyhood club Manchester United – feels this plays in City’s favour.
“City have an advantage in the next four games as they play in front of Liverpool,” he told Sky Sports.
“I think it’s always an advantage to play first so they can get the points on the board and put pressure on.”
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Neville went on to predict Liverpool will have problems with away games against the likes of Southampton, rather than the upcoming home tie against Chelsea.
“I don’t think today is the toughest game for Liverpool,” he added after the Tottenham win.
“I think Southampton away, Cardiff away, even Newcastle away, could provide tougher and sterner opposition.
“It’s those games that can sometimes freak you out a bit, especially as a couple of those teams are in relegation battles.
“I don’t see Chelsea at home as the game that will catch Liverpool out.
“If they are going to have a problem I think it will be those away games.”
A quadruple too far?
Aside from battling Liverpool for Premier League glory City are looking to go one better than local rivals Manchester United and win four major pieces of silverware in a single campaign. United famously lifted the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League in the 1998/99 season.
City have already won the League Cup, defeating Chelsea on penalties, and face Brighton & Hove Albion in the FA Cup semi-finals. Awaiting them in the Champions League quarter-finals is Tottenham Hotspur, whom they also meet in the Premier League.
