Liverpool set clear target as number of losses they can afford to retain title revealed

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Liverpool and Arne Slot might be convinced they can turn around their poor run of form - it is still early in the season after all. But the loss column is a number they cannot ignore.

The Reds have already become the first side in English top flight history to win their first five games and then lose the four after that. Since the defeat at Crystal Palace , Slot's side have been in free fall. Chelsea beat them, then Manchester United stunned them at Anfield before Brentford got the better of them at the weekend.

That leaves them in seventh and seven points shy of leaders Arsenal . Now, with 29 games to go, there's ample time for the Reds to rediscover their mojo and get back into the title race.

Manchester City , seen as one of the three sides capable of winning the league, are only one point ahead. Arsenal have been able to establish a comfortable lead at this early stage, winning seven and lost one of their nine outings.

Liverpool's four losses does not afford them a huge amount of wiggle room though. A run down the list of previous Premier League winners tells you no team claims the title with anything more than six losses across the season.

It means Slot's side can only lose two more games across the next seven months, or they'll have to rewrite history if they want to retain their champion status. Last term Liverpool lost on four occasions, but they were only beaten once in their first 30 games. Three of those losses came once the title was all but done.

Over the past decade only Manchester City in 2021 have lost six games and still been champions - that owing to an incredible 15-match winning run. There's no doubt that the bar has been lifted in recent seasons, making it harder to win the title.

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A look at the points required to be champions tells you that. In seven of the last nine seasons you've needed a minimum of 89 points to claim the title. That kind of consistency is backed up by the lack of defeats.

It's also crucial to consider when the defeats happen. Often a champion side may finish the year with four or five losses - but if the bulk of those defeats came post-April once they had a comfortable buffer it carries a different context to a team who had been beaten four times by November and had to be relentless from them on. That's the situation facing the Reds.

When Liverpool won the title under Jurgen Klopp in 2020 they lost three times. Last term it was four. City won the title in 2024 and 2022 with three losses. It 2018 their Centurions suffered just two defeats.

Most losses in a season - 6

Fewest losses in a season - 0

Most draws in a season - 13

Fewest draws in a season - 2

Highest PPG in a season - 2.63

Lowest PPG in a season - 1.97

So already the scope for Liverpool to recover from defeats is minimal. And their fixtures are still not kind. They have to play Arsenal at the Emirates. Manchester City home and away. Tottenham , Aston Villa and United on the road are all games that could go the wrong way.

Liverpool's lack of draws could yet work in their favour. An increase in defeats can be somewhat offset by a lack of stalemates and would help bump up their points per game figure.

Chelsea in 2016/17 for example lost five times. Two of those losses coming in the first six games. But across the year they drew just three games - the second lowest figure for a champion team in Premier League history.

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City edged Liverpool in the greatest Premier League title race ever in 2018/19. Then Pep Guardiola's side lost four times compared to Liverpool's one, but the side from Manchester only drew two games. The Reds meanwhile drew seven times and ultimately missed out by a point.

The lowest points total to be a Premier League champion was 75, set by the Red Devils in 1996/97. But as the years have gone on, quality has increased and the margin for error has decreased. Even by the mid-2000s Sir Alex Ferguson knew his side had to evolve.

"We once won the Championship with 76 points, but those days have gone," said the Scot. It means Slot cannot rely on rivals dropping off, but he must rely on his players to be somewhere close to perfect from here on in.

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