Hot off the heels of a disappointing loss to relegation threatened Leicester City last Monday night, Liverpool kept the “inconsistently consistent” narrative alive with a resounding win over Champions League challengers Arsenal at Anfield on Saturday. Although the three-points catapulted them back into the top-four, competition for a spot in Europe’s showpiece competition remains as fierce as ever with both Manchester United and the Gunners only a few points behind and both holding a match in hand.
“You can’t afford to lose games. It is always possible that you will not win but it is the way you play the game. You must play with the same intention: to win the game and give everything you have,” explained Reds midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum. “We have to make sure at the end of the season we are there,” continued the Dutchman. “Now it is good for the confidence but if we are going to do it like we play before: playing well and then playing bad again then it is going to be tough for us to come in the top four,” added Wijnaldum. “We have to have a good run and be confident we can finish in one of the spots.”
With their title challenge done and dusted, Liverpool have now turned their attention to securing a spot in next season’s Champions League, but a rash of poor results since the turn of the year has hampered their efforts considerably. If they want to qualify, they’re going to have to start winning no matter the opposition and they’ll be handed a chance to get the consistency ball rolling again when drop zone candidates Burnley FC — who upset Jurgen Klopp’s side at Turf Moor last August — visit Merseyside on Sunday.
“Yesterday when we came in for a recovery session, there was a stat on the television showing the points we’ve gained against the top four teams,” said Liverpool ‘keeper Simon Mignolet. “It’s a really good achievement… but because of that we also had a bit of mixed emotions,” mused the Belgian. “Against Arsenal, Tottenham and Chelsea, we played well and got the points we wanted, but we need to do it on a more consistent basis,” stressed the shot-stopper, urging the team to up their game no matter the opposition. “The aim now must be to try and win three points against Burnley on Sunday, otherwise these three points and the performance against Arsenal will mean nothing.”
