Liverpool have the opportunity to cement themselves as one of the best teams in world football on Wednesday night when they host Real Madrid at Anfield, Liverpool expert David Lynch has argued.
Arne Slot could hardly have enjoyed a better start to life as Reds boss, with the team leading the way in the Premier League by a remarkable eight points, and the Dutchman's side could go 11 points clear of champions Manchester City should they beat them on December 1.
Given City have lost five and drawn one of their last six matches, including failing to beat Feyenoord on Tuesday despite winning 3-0 with just 15 minutes remaining, it looks as though the Reds should head into that clash as strong favourites.
Liverpool are also the only team in the Champions League to have a perfect record, and their tally of 12 points means they can in all likelihood afford to drop points in at least two of their four remaining league stage games and still automatically qualify for the round of 16.
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The Merseysiders' impeccable record in Europe this season has led some fans to suggest that their clash against champions Real Madrid is of little importance, and that Slot should rotate his star players on Wednesday in order to prioritise the City game on Sunday.
However, Lynch has dismissed such claims, telling Sports Mole: "I keep hearing talk about 'you should rotate and make changes, it doesn't really matter', but I just can never buy into that. I think [the Real Madrid game] is huge.
"To beat them would really convince this team and this squad, much of whom haven't been around for the title charges or the win in the European Cup - the likes of Gravenberch, Szoboszlai, Mac Allister – [a win would] tell them 'we are the real deal, we are as good as we've shown so far this season, we are Champions League contenders, we're Premier League contenders'.
"I also think there's a lot of value in getting to a points tally that will get you through in the top eight as quickly as possible. If you can get to a point where after six games you've won six and you've basically qualified, the last two games in the group stages of the Champions League [become] an utter irrelevance."
Champions League contenders?
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A win over Real could be significant for the Reds in a number of ways, with the first being the potential ramifications of beating both the European champions and Premier League champions within the space of a week.
Los Blancos have been the dominant force in continental football for some time considering they have won six of the last 11 Champions Leagues on offer, as many as Liverpool, Barcelona and Bayern Munich have each won in their history.
Defeating them at Anfield could establish Slot's side as the team to beat in Europe's premier competition, but it could also provide the club with a much-needed mentality boost given their poor record against Real Madrid.
Indeed, under Jurgen Klopp the sides met on six occasions, with the Spanish giants unbeaten in that period while emerging victorious five times, including in two Champions League finals.
Lynch was keen to highlight that defeating Carlo Ancelotti's Real could propel the Reds to new heights, saying to Sports Mole: "I think the mental boost it could provide, of finally getting one over on Real Madrid - under Jurgen [Liverpool] faced them six times, one draw and five defeats, two of which were in Champions League finals - it's a monkey [they] need to get off [their] back.
"Say [Liverpool] rotate and get beat or get a draw against Real Madrid. I think that takes a bit of the bounce away going into that game against Man City, whereas if you win this game and you play well and get a good result there, then you come into Manchester City. There's no travel involved, it's two games at Anfield back to back.
"[They'd] be absolutely flying into that City game and against a City who are really wobbling at the moment as well, and don't like playing at Anfield anyway."
Trent Alexander-Arnold custody derby?
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Trent Alexander-Arnold is out of contract in the summer and is at present set to leave the club for free alongside Mohamed Salah and Virgil van Dijk.
While various clubs have been reported to hold an interest in signing Salah and Van Dijk, Trent has been consistently been linked with a move to Madrid, and the vice-captain fuelled speculation regarding his future when he said in October that his primary goal was to win a Ballon d'Or.
With trophy success often the determining factor when awarding the Ballon d'Or, Real are seen by many to provide the biggest chance of winning the individual honour.
However, should the Reds take advantage of Real's struggles this season on Wednesday, then perhaps Trent could be persuaded that his best chance of winning major silverware is at Anfield.
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It is unlikely that a single match would make the right-back choose one way or the other, but when asked if winning the game could have an impact on his future, Lynch told Sports Mole: "It can't hurt. If you start to see a Real Madrid that's maybe in a bit of decline or is losing key men like Modric - this is probably his final year - they've [also] lost Toni Kroos.
"Trent said in the only interview in which he's spoken about his contract situation that his key concern is 'what can I win? Is this going to be a Liverpool side that's challenging for trophies? And if so, then I want to stay.'
"To beat Real Madrid and show that there's been a bit of a power shift there - you're already in the middle of a title race that you're leading by a million miles - I do think it can be helpful in terms of what that says and the messages that it communicates to Trent."
With injuries to key players like Vinicius Junior and Aurelien Tchouameni, Liverpool could have their best opportunity to win against Real Madrid for the first time since March 2009.
Sports Mole editor Barney Corkhill spoke with Liverpool expert David Lynch to discuss the Reds' match against Real Madrid on Wednesday and the implications of a victory.
Press play on the video at the top of this article to hear the full discussion.
Lewis Nolan
