LONDON: Liverpool defender Dejan Lovren said on Thursday he believes the Premier League leaders can go through the whole season unbeaten, matching the achievement of Arsenal’s ‘Invincibles’ in the 2003-04 season.
Jurgen Klopp’s side are one point clear of defending champions Manchester City after 14 wins and three draws from 17 games.
“Hopefully we can be unbeaten until the end of the season,” said Lovren, buoyed by Sunday’s victory over arch-rivals Manchester United, which resulted in the sacking of their manager Jose Mourinho.
“Of course it will be a challenge but this is what we want, this is why we came here to Liverpool, because we know we can do it. Arsenal did it before so why not?“
Liverpool have not won the English top-flight since 1990, but could extend their lead over Pep Guardiola’s City to four points with a win at Wolves on Friday.
Lovren knows their title rivals have few weaknesses and the outcome of the season will most likely come down to who makes the fewest mistakes.
“I’m not sure that they have any weaknesses,” he added.
“Last year they won by 19 points. They know how to manage even when they lose. They also lost one or two games last year and still they managed to be 19 points ahead.”
Liverpool will be buoyed by the news that James Milner should be back to boost the ranks for the Reds.
The club’s vice-captain missed out at Anfield in the victory over United as a precautionary measure due a minor muscle issue.
But Milner returned to training alongside his teammates on Tuesday and told the club’s official website: “I just had a bit of a sensation in my hamstring at the end of the Napoli game and made the decision, the manager made the decision (to miss Sunday’s game).
“It was the right thing not to risk me at the weekend, so hopefully I’ll be fine for the next game.”
Trent Alexander-Arnold, however, is not expected to make a return due to an injury he sustained against Napoli in the Champions League, with Jurgen Klopp hopeful the defender will return again after Christmas.
Assessing the threat of Wolves, who sit seventh in the Premier League table and only need a point to sneak into the top six ahead of Saturday’s matches, Klopp said: “We have to be really strong, we know that. It will be a really interesting game.
“They have changed system a few times, so that will be interesting as well, how they do that. We have to be ready for everything.”
Meanwhile, Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo said Wolves are “ready” to welcome the league leaders to Molineux.
“It’s a big challenge for us,” he said. “We are OK, we are prepared. We require a lot, it’s a fantastic team, a fantastic manager — what a game.”
Wolves will be without their influential forward Diogo Jota for the game after the Portuguese was forced off at half-time against Bournemouth last weekend with a hamstring injury.
“For (the game), Jota is impossible. Hopefully he’ll be back soon,” said Espirito Santo.
Liverpool can match the ‘Invincibles’ of Arsenal, says Dejan Lovren
Liverpool can match the ‘Invincibles’ of Arsenal, says Dejan Lovren
- Jurgen Klopp’s side are one point clear of defending champions Manchester City
- Liverpool have not won the English top-flight since 1990
Drake Maye aims to do what Tom Brady couldn’t with the Patriots: win a playoff game in Denver
FOXBOROUGH, Mass.: Drake Maye has a chance to accomplish something not even Tom Brady did with the Patriots.
Maye is hoping to beat the Broncos in the AFC championship game in Denver on Sunday and lead New England to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2018. The Patriots have never won a playoff game in Denver — losing all four tries, with Brady going 0-3.
“Just the AFC championship, the chance to go to the Super Bowl. That’d be huge,” Maye said. “Another road environment that’s had success in the past. … I know it would be a big-time win.”
The Patriots advanced to their 14th AFC championship game in the last 25 years on Sunday when they beat the Houston Texans 28-16 in Foxborough. Denver beat Buffalo 33-30 to reach the conference title game.
New England and Denver both finished 14-3 in the regular season, but the Broncos won the tiebreaker for home-field advantage because they had a better record against common opponents: Denver beat the Raiders twice this season but the Patriots lost to them.
That loss — to the worst team in the NFL in the first game of the Mike Vrabel era — sent New England into one of the most inhospitable environments in the league. In addition to the high-energy crowd, the Patriots will also have to contend with a low-oxygen environment that they won’t have a chance to acclimate to.
“Kind of what we’ve been doing on the road all season long,” said Maye, who has guided the Patriots to an 8-0 road record this season. “They’ve got a great team, so we’re going to have a tough challenge. But I’m looking forward to getting out there. And getting a chance to possibly celebrate on an away field would be pretty special.”
The last team to go undefeated on the road with a new head coach was the San Francisco 49ers under George Seifert in 1989; they won the Super Bowl.
“Coach has always been saying, ‘Road warriors,’” Maye said. “So, we’re trying to find that one more time and finish out strong what we’ve done this year.”
The Broncos are 18-5 in home playoff games all-time. But they’ll will be without starting quarterback Bo Nix, who broke his ankle near the end of the divisional round victory over Buffalo. Instead, the offense will be led by former Patriot Jarrett Stidham, who hasn’t thrown a pass since 2023.
That’s why New England opened as a 5½-point favorite — the biggest road favorite ever in a conference championship game. The line has since moved to Denver plus-4½.
“We always feel as though no matter what anyone else has to say, we still have something to prove,” said cornerback Marcus Jones, who returned an interception for a touchdown against Houston. “We’re trying to always prove ourselves right and not trying to prove other people wrong. That’s kind of the philosophy we’ve had for a long time.”
Win or lose, the Patriots could have trouble getting back to New England: A major snowstorm is expected to dump a foot or more of snow on the area.
Vrabel said the team is prepared if it can’t leave Denver on Sunday night.
“We have multiple plans of what could go on based on the weather. something that they’re familiar with here,” he said. “I mean, there’s things I can control, that I can’t control.”
