Liverpool told they can deliver knockout Arsenal blow and win the Premier League title this weekend

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Liverpool have so far made light of their status as favourites for the Premier League by winning five games out of five.

The Reds ran away with the division last season, finishing 10 points clear of second place Arsenal.

In reality, the gap to the Gunners should have been even bigger, but Liverpool took their foot off the gas once the job was done in April.

And Arne Slot’s team have already reasserted their dominance over Arsenal, beating them 1-0 at Anfield on matchday three of the Premier League season.

Mikel Arteta’s team have had a difficult start, and they head to St James’ Park to take on Newcastle this weekend in another tough-looking match.

Meanwhile, Liverpool face Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park. And while that represents a tricky task in itself, former Arsenal player Paul Merson believes if results go the Reds’ way this weekend, they could already have the title wrapped up.

Paul Merson makes ‘crazy’ Premier League title claim

Saturday’s game against Crystal Palace is arguably Liverpool’s most difficult test to date in the Premier League.

Oliver Glasner’s team are on a 17-game unbeaten run, and have already beaten Liverpool in the Community Shield.

READ MORE: £40m player will need to have his best game for Liverpool if Reds are to end Crystal Palace streak

But Arsenal’s trip to Newcastle is also a test. If the Reds can take the points and Arsenal lose, the gap between the challengers will be eight points. According to Merson, that will be too much to bridge.

“Should Liverpool win at Selhurst Park, they will go eight points clear of Arsenal before the Gunners play Newcastle away from home,” the pundit writes for Sportskeeda.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
1	LiverpoolLiverpool	5	5	0	0	11	5	6	15

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
5	Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace	5	2	3	0	6	2	4	9

“So if Liverpool win this game and Arsenal lose on Sunday, the title race is over, finished! I know it sounds crazy and Arsenal have good fixtures coming up, but eight points between them will be too much.”

“We were all choosing between Liverpool and Arsenal at the start of the season,” Merson adds.

“And if anyone was on the fence back then and I told them Liverpool would have an eight-point head start, no one would have backed Arsenal for the title! That was when we still had 38 games left to play, and we only have 32 after this weekend.”

Liverpool must focus on beating Crystal Palace

Should Liverpool and Newcastle both win this weekend, it would certainly start to look very good indeed for the Reds’ title chances.

However, plenty needs to happen before then. Going away to Palace has been the undoing of many teams in recent times and Liverpool will know that all too well.

Nevertheless, the psychological blow a win in east London would deliver to Arsenal would be absolutely massive. If they play at their best then Liverpool have enough to beat Palace. They must focus on that.

Get their job done, and they can then sit back and enjoy the rest of the weekend’s action. St James’ Park has been a bogey ground for Arsenal recently, and if Liverpool put the pressure on again, Arteta and his team could crumble.