Liverpool look for cutting edge in bid to win Premier League title | OneFootball

Liverpool may be left rueing missed chances come the end of the season.

The Reds racked up a remarkable 22 shots in Saturday’s clash with Manchester United, but could only draw 2-2 — despite allowing their opponents just nine attempts in reply.

That result has handed Arsenal the advantage in the title race, with Mikel Arteta’s side now leading the Premier League table on goal difference.

With seven rounds of action remaining to decide who wins the Premier League title, we consider how Liverpool can improve their conversion rate to avoid any further slip-ups.

How wasteful are Liverpool?

Virgil van Dijk drew attention to Liverpool’s profligacy after the draw at Old Trafford.

Speaking to Sky Sports, he said: “We were wasteful with our chances and we gave them [Manchester United] a lifeline.”

That was certainly true on this occasion — and it has also been a wider trend in the Merseysiders’ season.

No Premier League outfit has attempted more shots this term (629), but their shooting accuracy stands at just 34.18%.

Only five teams have a worse record when it comes to the percentage of their shots on target, with Liverpool even finding themselves behind the division’s bottom side Sheffield United (35.97%).

Chances galore

Fortunately for Liverpool, the sheer volume of opportunities they create goes some way to masking their conversion problem.

Jurgen Klopp’s unit have produced a league-leading 474 goalscoring opportunities — some way ahead of fellow title challengers Manchester City (445) and Arsenal (401).

Of those, 84 represent big chances, which is again the division’s best record.

With nine wins from 12 top-flight fixtures in 2024 and only a solitary defeat, the Reds will feel that their first-class creativity can largely compensate for a lack of clinical edge.

Jota return

Diogo Jota’s imminent return from injury could be key for Liverpool in the coming weeks.

Only Mohamed Salah (48.35%) boasts a better Premier League shooting accuracy than the 27-year-old’s 47.22%, while he also ranks second in the squad for big chances scored per 90 minutes (0.43).

Fellow forward Darwin Núñez has netted an impressive 0.55 goals per 90 in 2023/24, but that tally still falls below his 0.74 expected goals per 90.

Adding a more ruthless finisher into the attacking mix could be the difference between success and failure when it comes to Liverpool’s title aspirations.