It’s a bigger weekend than Frank Lampard had planned. Arsenal’s trip to Liverpool may be one of their toughest remaining tests. Steve Cooper needs a boost.
Game to watch – Liverpool v Arsenal
The form book suggests this ought to be a breeze for the leaders. But Liverpool’s best form is not so indistinguishable in the rear-view mirror for Arsenal fans to relax before going to Anfield.
The Reds have been a shambles for much of the season, summed up by their recent form that has seen them lose three and draw one of their last four games. But all of those matches, in which they’ve mustered a single goal, have been on the road. The last time they were at Anfield, they tw*tted Manchester United 7-0. And they’ve lost only once at home in the league all season.
So they can still turn it on. But even so, only their very best this season would be enough to scupper Arsenal’s charge towards the title while the Gunners are, in Jurgen Klopp’s words, “flying, in incredible shape” and playing “super football that is, honestly, very good to watch”.
Just as impressive as Arsenal’s performances has been their resilience. Almost every test they have passed and every obstacle that was expected to trip them up has been gracefully sidestepped. But if Liverpool decide to show up, after what Klopp insisted was a positive performance at Chelsea – even if we disagreed – then Sunday could be one of the trickier assignments of the nine left for the Gunners.
Manager to watch – Frank Lampard
Part of us thinks that if Todd Boehly isn’t taking the rest of Chelsea’s season seriously, then why should we? But maybe re-hiring Lampard is just daft enough to work.
The nostalgia of Lampard’s return to Stamford Bridge nullifies much of the threat of mutiny on the terraces throughout the remainder of a campaign that hinges on a Champions League quarter-final against Real Madrid. And the players won’t have to Google him, like some did when Graham Potter was appointed, since Lampard’s name and face is all over Stamford Bridge and Cobham.
That, though, is unlikely to have the same pacifying effect on the squad as it is intended to on the fans. So how does Lampard get the players onside and on board given his previous failures and the message from the board that his interim appointment sends?
Does he reach for his carrot or his stick in the brief time between his return, the trip to Wolves on Saturday and next week’s visit to the Bernabeu? A short,…
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