See what happened the 5 times Liverpool climb top of the EPL table in December
Following their late winner against Crystal Palace, Liverpool now find themselves top of the Premier League table, having collected 37 points from their opening 16 matches.
Jurgen Klopp’s side have often gone toe-to-toe with Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City at the top of the table, but there seems to be even more competition this time around with the likes of Arsenal and Aston Villa also in fine form.
There’s no denying that Liverpool are in a great position right now and we’ve checked out what happened on the last five occasions the Reds found themselves top of the Premier League in December.
2020–21
Liverpool fans probably won’t look back upon the 2020-21 campaign with fond memories. However, they did start the campaign well enough as they topped the league table for the vast majority of December.
Things took a turn for Liverpool in the new year and with the majority of their central defenders on the treatment table, they plummeted down the table by losing eight of their first 12 matches of 2021.
Klopp eventually managed to salvage things as the Reds went unbeaten in their final 10 matches to finish the season in third. That last-minute Alisson winner against West Brom will forever be iconic.
Alisson’s goal vs West Brom has been named the 24th Greatest Goal in Liverpool History pic.twitter.com/ACgzmk3962
— LiverpoolGoals (@Liverpoolgoals_) June 16, 2022
2019–20
An absolutely dominant campaign. There can be little debate that Liverpool’s 2019-20 title-winning squad ranks among the best Premier League sides of all time.
From the off, Klopp’s side were absolutely relentless. From August until July, Liverpool sat top of the Premier League table and they ended up finishing a whopping 18 points clear of Manchester City in second.
Liverpool accumulated a total of 99 points throughout the 2019-20 season and they had the title wrapped up with plenty of time to spare. A truly remarkable campaign.
2018–19
The standard at the very top of the Premier League was ridiculous this year. Liverpool went back and forth with Manchester City in one of the greatest title rivalries of all time.
Klopp’s side climbed to to top of the league in December 2018, following a 4-0 triumph away at Bournemouth. In total, Liverpool spent 17 game weeks at the top of the tree, but that wasn’t enough to see of Guardiola’s men.
Despite only losing one game throughout the entire campaign, Liverpool finished second in the league and trailed City by just a single point come the end of the season. At least Klopp’s side managed to get their hands on the Champions League trophy that year.
2013–14
The Luis Suarez season. Brendan Rodgers guided the Reds to the top of the table in December 2013, following a 3-1 triumph at Anfield against Сardiff City.
Liverpool were one of the best sides to watch in Europe at the time and the likes of Suarez, Daniel Sturridge and Raheem Sterling were all on fire throughout the campaign.
Despite being top of the league with three games to go, the pressure eventually told as Liverpool lost ground against Chelsea and Crystal Palace which paved the way for Man City to pip them to the title.
IT’S CRYSTANBUL EVE… look away, Liverpool fans! 👻
The Reds’ title hopes went up in flames at Selhurst Park a decade ago. They led 3-0 & looked to be cruising, but an unthinkable Palace comeback meant it ended 3-3, with Luis Suarez driven to tears. 🤯pic.twitter.com/68mexLlMCL
— Men in Blazers (@MenInBlazers) December 8, 2023
2008–09
With Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres in their pomp, Liverpool had a great shot at the title in 2008-09. Rafael Benitez’s side was a well-oiled machine around the time and they topped the table throughout the entire month of December in 2008.
Throughout the entire campaign, Liverpool only lost two league matches and they won 11 of their last 12 games during the intense run-in. Unfortunately for Liverpool, they were up against one of the best Manchester United sides of the modern era.
Despite doing the double over Sir Alex Ferguson’s side, the Red Devils still managed to pip them to the title by four points in the end.
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