Ranking Liverpool’s rivals for the Premier League title: Chelsea impress, Manchester City out of the race?

Though it may not have seemed that way at first, the Premier League may officially have a title race with just two points separating league leaders Liverpool and second-place Chelsea.

The Reds’ consequential draw against Fulham on Saturday and Chelsea’s win over Brentford on Sunday means a competitive title race could be ahead in England, though the tight margins mean a few other teams might be able to dream of winning silverware by season’s end. With a game in hand, this title is still Liverpool’s to lose but each of the Premier League’s top five sides have showcased their imperfections in recent months, setting up for a fascinating second half of the season as the title race begins to come into shape.

As things heat up, here’s a look at the top challenges for Liverpool’s first-place spot.

Premier League standings

Honorable mention: Nottingham Forest

A discussion about this season’s Premier League top teams offers a natural entry point to applaud Nottingham Forest, who at this point are undoubtedly in the race for a spot in the UEFA Champions League. Add to the fact that they are just eight points adrift of Liverpool as Christmas approaches, one might not blame a Forest supporter for dreaming of a title run that might feel like a reminder of Leicester City’s 2015-16 triumph. Those fans might even point to the fact that teams have overcome worse – the Arsenal side that won the title in the 1997-98 season were 13 points behind Manchester United after 19 games. Stranger things have happened, but it’s probably fair to say that the odds are not in Forest’s favor at this point in time.

3. Manchester City

For more than a decade, Manchester City were once the definition of a team you could not count out. On six occasions in the last 12 years, City have overcome deficits as distinct as 10 points by New Year’s Eve and as nail-biting as eight points with six games to go to win the Premier League title. In theory, the current nine-point difference between City and Liverpool is familiar terrain but Pep Guardiola’s side look far from recognizable. They now have just one win in their last 11 – the worst form of Guardiola’s managerial career – and they are throwing away points in remarkable fashion, most recently by blowing a 1-0 lead against Manchester United by conceding two silly goals in the dying minutes of the match. It might still be too early to truly count them out, but even in years past, they never looked as resigned to defeat as they do now. It will take quite the effort for City to dig themselves out of this hole, so until then, it might be best not to talk about their title hopes.

2. Arsenal

Sitting just six points behind Liverpool at this stage of the season, Arsenal are once again firmly in the conversation for the title but things seem to be slightly off from last season’s dominant form. While Mikel Arteta’s team remains defensively sound while averaging 0.9 goals per game, their offensive production has dried up this season. The Gunners are scoring an average of 1.8 goals per game in the Premier League, down from last season’s tally of 2.4. The same trend is true across the board, averaging fewer shots (17.3 to 14.1) and expected goals (2 to 1.7) this time around. There’s enough time to turn things around, of course, and the gap between them and first place means the title is still within reach. They have left a lot of points on the table, though, with their six draws, and will need to start stringing together more victories quickly in order to overcome that deficit.

1. Chelsea

Liverpool’s once insurmountable lead is now down to just two points, thanks in part to Chelsea’s surprising ability to run their own race. This season was clearly the start of a new project, marked by hiring young manager Enzo Maresca to lead a once-bloated squad of rising talents as the Blues’ higher-ups bet on the future. That bet looks to be paying off sooner than expected as they emerge as Liverpool’s main rivals for the Premier League title, quietly stringing together impressive results and losing just two league games in the process. Their goalscoring exploits have been their strong suit, leading the league with 37 goals and boasting Cole Palmer, who is already up to 11 goals this season. The Blues still do not look like the finished product, so it would be correct to pick Liverpool as the favorites, but Maresca’s side look willing and able to give the Reds a run for their money, setting up for one of England’s most unique title challenges in quite some time.

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