Former England and Manchester City defender Micah Richards has identified Liverpool as “serious” contenders for the Premier League title this season.
Richards pointed to two key factors – firepower and defensive discipline – as the reasons why Liverpool have the potential to mount a title challenge.
Under Arne Slot, Liverpool have already established themselves as a formidable force in the 2024/25 season.
Slot, who took over from Jurgen Klopp in the summer, has led the team to three convincing wins in his first three league matches.
Liverpool have scored seven goals and maintained a clean sheet in each match so far.
Their most recent victory came on Sunday against Manchester United, where Slot’s dynamic Reds overwhelmed their rivals with a 3-0 triumph at Old Trafford.
This result has propelled Liverpool to second place in the Premier League, level on points with Manchester City, but having scored just two fewer goals.
Clearly, things are going better than even the most optimistic Reds supporters could have hoped for, and Richards is confident that Liverpool can sustain this form throughout the season.
The Sky Sports and Match of the Day pundit said on The Rest Is Football podcast: “Look what they’ve got from the bench, they’ve just signed Federico Chiesa who I think is outstanding.
“You’ve got Cody Gakpo who had a brilliant Euros who comes in and runs about.
“That’s all still to come.
“I think they are serious now about challenging for the title.
“The reason I say that is because they seem more disciplined defensively and they’ve got firepower up front.
“They’re challengers now.”
Alan Shearer expanded on that, saying: “They’ve got some firepower haven’t they.
“They were really aggressive in the tackle and passing it into forward positions, tight at the back and every single player seemed to be at it.
“When they’ve got that sort of firepower, and you give the ball away, they have the ability to hurt you.”
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