Liverpool ask City the question as title nerves start jangling

A game for all the cliches and we’re going to use every single one of them, so fair warning.

Liverpool have absolutely asked Manchester City the question ahead of Sunday’s Manchester derby by grinding out a hard-fought 1-0 victory over West Ham. Were Liverpool anywhere near their best? Absolutely not, but doesn’t that just make this precisely the sort of victory on which title wins are built?

And what, then, of their unfortunate vanquished foes? West Ham can certainly take pride in the fact they made life difficult for Liverpool. The title-chasing Reds certainly knew they’d been in a game, and there’s not a shadow of a doubt that the Hammers will play far worse than that and win having gone toe-to-toe with an elite side and been only some less than clinical finishing away from taking a point at least back to London.

Mohamed Salah endured the most frustrating sort of evening for an attacker, one in which he both struggled to exert influence on the general play yet also found himself with plenty of chances none of which he took. His dudgeon was high when he was substituted late on and was muttering to himself as he made his way back to the bench. For Jurgen Klopp, the arrival of the fantastic Luis Diaz means he now has five players who will all expect a place in his front three and that means there will always be some disappointment. For a manager, though, that’s a nice problem to have.

David Moyes has one of those too: does he prioritise European qualification via the league, or the high-wire but potentially more rewarding route of the Europa League which would bring with it both silverware and a Champions League spot that seems unlikely to come via a league finish. No shame in that, of course, with West Ham punching well