Jamie Carragher believes Liverpool will make it into the top-four come May despite a dismal start to the season leaving them ninth.
The Reds have endured their worst start to a Premier League season under Jurgen Klopp following consecutive defeats against Nottingham Forest and Leeds United in recent weeks. With just four wins from their opening 12 games leaving them eight points short of Newcastle United in fourth and a massive 15 points off top-of-the-table Arsenal, the Anfield club face an uphill task if they want to qualify for next season's Champions League.
And the task is made that much harder by the abundance of in-form challengers, with four other sides looking like competing for the two places behind Manchester City and Arsenal - all-but shoe-ins for the top two on current form. Tottenham Hotspur are not playing particularly well under Antonio Conte, but they have only lost three games all season and host Liverpool on Sunday in a potentially crucial game.
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Newcastle hold fourth spot after a scintillating run of form that has seen them unbeaten in eight, winning five of their last six and scoring 16 goals in the process, while both Manchester United and Chelsea are finding their feet after relatively slow starts. But despite their competitors flying while Liverpool struggle, former Reds captain Carragher still believes a top-four place is possible - although he admitted he would 'bite your hand off' for a guaranteed place right now.
“I think the north London clubs [Arsenal and Tottenham] will both get in it now, I really do believe that,” he told the Daily Mirror. “I have loved watching Arsenal, they’ve almost been my favourite team to watch this season.
“I think Liverpool will get in there ahead of Chelsea and Man United and then the two north London clubs will be alongside Man City. But I think it will be a fight that goes right down to the wire and as a Liverpool supporter if you offered me fourth now I would bite your hand off.
“I think Liverpool are in a right fight for that and they could easily finish sixth. But I do think Liverpool will stick in there and I do think in that second-half of the season we’ve got to see the Liverpool of old at some stage.
“When Liverpool get back to that it is too much for everybody else in this league, except Man City. But if they don’t get back to that consistency it’s going to be tough for them.”
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