Premier League midseason report: The runaway Reds and the rest of the pack

Liverpool have all but ended the Premier League title race, but there’s still intrigue elsewhere in England’s top flight.

There will be no title race in the Premier League this season.

Last season’s required a photo finish, with Liverpool and Manchester City both winning their final nine games in a sprint to the line. This season, Jurgen Klopp’s Reds have given themselves enough of a lead that they could stroll from here to the finish. Not that they are taking things so leisurely, winning 19 of the 20 Premier League games they have played so far – 58 from a possible 60 points.

Indeed, the Premier League might as well start tying red ribbons on the trophy now. For three decades, Liverpool have found themselves in something of a torture chamber, reminded of their past glories at every turn, but unable to repeat them. Now, they are on the cusp of being English champions again and their current glory could result in a peculiar anticlimax – it seems unlikely that Liverpool will have their own Sergio Aguero moment as they finally get their hands on the Premier League trophy.

In this transaction, City will be required to let go of the title that has been theirs for the past two seasons. Pep Guardiola appears to be at another career crossroads with the Catalan’s methods seemingly seemingly losing their effectiveness after three years just as was the case at both Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Guardiola, an increasingly irritable figure, could feasibly choose to take on a new challenge if he feels Man City can progress no further under his charge.

Beyond the unprecedented pace being set by Liverpool at the top of the table, it’s impossible to avoid the feeling that the Premier League, particularly among the so-called ‘Big Six,’ has dropped this season. Arsenal have suffered their worst start to a season for a generation, firing Unai Emery and hiring Mikel Arteta to at least point them in the right direction again. Even the most elementary of progress is proving difficult at the Emirates Stadium right now.

Then there’s Manchester United who have been something of an enigma over the first half of the 2019-20 season. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has led his side to some impressive results against the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City, Liverpool and Tottenham, but have struggled badly against lower caliber opponents, winning just one of the six matches in which they have had more possession.

Spurs provided one of the storylines of the campaign by sacking Mauricio Pochettino just a matter of months after he’d led the club to their first ever Champions League final, appointing Jose Mourinho in the Argentine’s place. It was a very un-Tottenham move and Mourinho is still attempting to find his identity as a coach in a place that cannot be considered his natural habitat. These are early days, but encouragement is already starting to wane that it will be a fruitful relationship.

Of the Premier League’s ‘Big Six’ currently down on their luck Chelsea appear to have the most to be positive about. Frank Lampard has very quickly forged one of the most exciting, dynamic teams in the country and all by using the previously overlooked young talent at Stamford Bridge. And yet even for Chelsea there have been great inconsistencies, suffering home defeats to Bournemouth and Southampton. They remain on course for a top four finish, though, which would represent progress.

Leicester City have provided the success story of the Premier League story so far, with Brendan Rodgers raising the Foxes to such a level that that were considered Liverpool’s sole challengers for the title. Dropped points against Norwich City, City and Liverpool effectively stopped such suggestions, but Leicester are playing a brand of football that is even a progression on the style that delivered the title in 2016. They will fight Guardiola and City for second place.

Sheffield United have also exceeded expectations, with the Blades in play for a top-six finish. Chris Wilder has earned himself praise as a footballing visionary while Nuno Espirito Santo continues to bolster his standing as one of Europe’s best young coaches, keeping Wolves in the top half after a somewhat patchy start to the season.

Everton and West Ham had both hoped that this season would see them challenge for a top-six place, but poor management has made the 2019-20 a transitional one. While the former has hired a three-time European champion in Carlo Ancelotti, the latter has re-appointed David Moyes. Everton may still emerge from this season with some progress to show. Hope is harder to come by for the Hammers.

Brighton have made progress under Graham Potter, whose new methods and ideas have refreshed the club, but still face a fight to remain in the division. Just five points divide Everton in 11th place and Bournemouth in 18th. Southampton, Newcastle, Burnley, Aston Villa, Watford and Norwich all find themselves in a scrap for their top-flight lives.

The Premier League has built its image over the past couple decades on being Europe’s most competitive division. Liverpool’s current lead at the top of the table makes that a tough sell, but the competition remains below them. That competition isn’t necessarily setting a high watermark, though. In fact, the tide hasn’t been this low for a while.