Liverpool: The Statistic That Will Worry Jurgen Klopp's Premier League Title-Chasing Team

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp at Anfield, Liverpool, October 22. Klopp's team moved top of the Premier League with a victory over Watford. Jan Kruger/Getty

Liverpool ascended to the Premier League summit on Sunday with a 6-1 victory over Watford at Anfield that will have sent a shockwave through the English Premier League.

Jurgen Klopp's dizzying brand of attacking football has Liverpool beaten in the league just once since the start of the new season.

Liverpool's German manager appears to be attempting to maintain level heads in his squad, appealing for "cool" after the game.

But what does going top after 11 games really mean for a club's long-term prospects of winning the league? That depends on whether your glass is half full or half empty. In five of the past 10 Premier League seasons, the leader at 11 games has failed to win the league. Newsweek looks back to weigh up Liverpool's title chances this season.

2015/16

Manchester City was top on goal difference from Arsenal after a 2-1 victory over Norwich. But a poor second half to the season meant it eventually scraped fourth, only just securing a spot in UEFA Champions League football, ahead of its rival Manchester United. Leicester City, the eventual champion, was back in third, three points behind City.

2014-15

Chelsea, under Jose Mourinho, led the Premier League by four points from Southampton. Mourinho's team went on to win the title by eight points from Manchester City.

2013-14

Arsenal led the league by two points from Liverpool, enjoying a fabulous season under Brendan Rodgers thanks to the goals of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge. But Manchester City, back in eighth place on November 10 on 19 points, stormed the second half of the season, beating Rodgers' side to the title by two points. Arsenal finished fourth.

2012-13

In the great Sir Alex Ferguson's final season in charge, Manchester United led the league by two points on November 10. Ferguson's last year ended with yet another league title, a whopping 11 points clear of second-placed Manchester City.

2011-12

Perhaps the most dramatic of all title races. City led the league after 11 games, all of them unbeaten, by five points from United. But Ferguson's side inched closer in the second half of the campaign. By the final day, the two great rivals were level on points. United defeated Sunderland 1-0, and for a stretch of time it was winning the title. But Sergio Aguero's last-gasp effort for City secured it the Premier League on goal difference.

2010-11

Chelsea led the league by two points from United, having conceded just five goals in 11 games. But Ferguson's United ratcheted up the intensity in the second half of the season, as it was wont to do under the Scot, to claim the league title by nine points from Chelsea, which sacked manager Carlo Ancelotti at the end of the campaign.

2009-10

Chelsea, under Ancelotti, led the league by two points from Manchester United. In a title race that went down to the final game of the season, Chelsea beat Wigan 8-0 to seal the title.

2008-09

Chelsea led Liverpool, at its zenith under Rafael Benitez, on goal difference. But it was United that surged in the season's second half, winning the title from Liverpool by four points.

2007-08

Arsenal led the league from Manchester United on goal difference. But the last truly great team that Ferguson built, helped by Cristiano Ronaldo's 42 goals in all competitions, claimed the title by two points from Chelsea.

2006-07

United led Chelsea after 11 games, and strolled to the league title by six points as the Stamford Bridge club drew its final five games of the season.

Uncommon Knowledge

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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

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