Liverpool has never been a happy hunting ground for Newcastle United. It’s been 30 years since they won at Anfield and that trend shows no signs of ending.
A dreary display in a 2-0 defeat on Wednesday night extended the run without a win in front of The Kop. It could have been more as Liverpool barely got out of third gear as goals from Dominic Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister eased the home side to three points that kept them on course for the Premier League title.
The 51st minute was ticking by on the Anfield scoreboard when the famous old venue was serenaded, for the first time this season, by Liverpool fans now firmly believing that the Premier League title was on its way. The score at the time was still only just 1-0, but such was the confidence the home faithful had in their team, the victory chant began.
The Reds supporters were right to be confident. Arsenal and Nottingham Forest were holding each other to a 0-0 draw and what was a slender advantage on paper at Anfield was still, ultimately, a comfortable scoreline. Newcastle, minus Alexander Isak in attack, looked toothless despite a promising second-half start. They rarely appeared like threatening Alisson Becker’s goal.
No shots on target for the Magpies. You aren’t going to trouble the big boys with that sort of statistic.
Talking of statistics, Liverpool are now 13 points clear at the top of the Premier League table. They look set to canter to the title, as they did the last time they lifted it in 2020. On that occasion, the gap was 18 points between them and Manchester City, who finished as runners-up.
Incredibly, Jurgen Klopp’s side won 32 of their 38 league games, drawing three and losing the other three to end the season on 99 points. This time around, Arne Slot’s men won’t reach that points tally given the number of draws they have already racked up (including a sensational 3-3 game at St James’ this season), but having lost just once they are harder to beat.
It’s a sign of their consistency and control as much as it is the failings of the chasing park. Slot is working with an identical squad as Klopp had last season, but has brought a measure of control to their play alongside a couple of tactical tweaks. While Newcastle fans can bemoan the lack of signings in the last three transfer windows, Liverpool can point to the same. They spent less than any other top flight club this season.
Of course, the Reds are starting off with a much firmer base. Investment over the years has been strong – Liverpool’s owners FSG have spent £1.24billion on new players over the last 10 years, compared to Newcastle’s £1.01bn. But given how much they have recouped in player sales during the same period, it translates to a net spend of £366m. At St James’ Park, where Newcastle have been notoriously poor sellers, the net spend is £626m.
Transfer spend alone won’t get Newcastle dining regularly at the top table. To challenge the Premier League elite consistently requires resource but also a mindset shift. Going to places like Anfield, Stamford Bridge and the Etihad and actually competing. Turning up on the big occasions when history is against you, when the opposition is at its peak, when you don’t have a fervent home support powering you on.
Small steps have been taken. Newcastle won at Old Trafford for only the second time in 53 years this season. Victory came at Tottenham Hotspur’s stadium too. The caveat there is both opposition are mired in mid-table, no longer the force of previous years. The first leg win at the Emirates showed United what they can achieve though with belief and ability.
Now they must start to turn up on these big occasions more often. Liverpool fans need to be anxious until the last few seconds, not getting the cigars out five minutes after half-time. Then Newcastle will know they have arrived.
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