Liverpool boss Arne Slot has rejected comparisons between the pressure of this season's title race and the Reds' victorious 2019/20 Premier League win.

Slot has led his side seven points clear at the top of the table in his first season at the helm with 13 games to go and will extend that lead to double figures if they can beat Aston Villa at Villa Park on Wednesday.

The Reds' form has been impressive, with a Carabao Cup final appearance to come next month and Liverpool also topping the Champions League group phase.

Bernardo Silva makes shock Liverpool Premier League title admission as 'difficult' position explained	Nerves no issue for Liverpool in title run-in says Slot	Arne Slot thinks Liverpool have big advantage over Arsenal for title race run-in

But it still does not quite reach the heights of the 2019/20 season, where they had dropped only two points all season by this point.

That gave them a 25-point advantage over their nearest challengers, Manchester City, and despite going on to lose three of their final 11 games, Jurgen Klopp's side lifted the trophy by 18 points.

Several first-team regulars, including Alisson, Virgil van Dijk, Andrew Robertson, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah remain at Anfield from that victorious season.

But speaking ahead of Wednesday's trip to Villa Park, Slot said the advantage of such a huge lead, far bigger than any Liverpool have come close to this season, meant it was difficult to compare the pressure Klopp's side faced with a tighter title race this time around - particularly as supporters were largely not permitted into stadiums once the season resumed during the Covid pandemic.

Also See:

"It helps if a player or a team already won something but I don't make that too big because you still have to play for it.

So you can hardly talk about pressure then.

"That said, the kind of manager I am, if I was 10 games off and 25 points ahead, I'd still feel we had to win two!

"But we do lean on the players.

We didn't need that against Wolves but if it happens towards the end of the season you guys are going to talk about nerves.

"But to secure a win in the Premier League if you are only leading by one goal is always going to be a lot of defending and hard work.

"It tells you what I've said so many times.

In the end phase of the season, a lot of games are really tight.

Yesterday, Barcelona were close to conceding an equaliser against Rayo [Vallecano].

"Results like this are quite common, like in our title-winning season with Feyenoord?
For more news relating to Manchester City, visit our sister site City Latest Live.