Neil Humphreys: Fix the defence, and Liverpool can grab second spot
Klopp's electrifying Reds can still leapfrog Mourinho's dull United
There's one incontestable fact that must entertain and irritate Singapore's English Premier League supporters in equal measure.
For the most part, Liverpool's matches are kaleidoscopes of colour and vibrancy.
Manchester United matches, on the other hand, can be paint-drying contests of dullness.
Neither side can win the title now. But the race for the runners-up spot is very much alive and, on current form, the Reds have the edge.
Of course, there's a caveat - and it's the size of the holes in Liverpool's defence. Juergen Klopp must go shopping first.
The January sales seldom throw up a bargain, but a new centre back and even a goalkeeper could prove to be the gifts that keep on giving.
The Reds' 5-0 thrashing of relegation-bound Swansea City yesterday morning (Singapore time) told everyone what we already knew, everyone except Klopp, of course.
The woeful Welsh club offered no resistance, which effectively gave Simon Mignolet, Joel Matip and Ragnar Klavan the night off.
At the other end, Liverpool's attacking trio were typically brilliant. Mohamed Salah was his usual impudent self, and Roberto Firmino and the mesmeric Philippe Coutinho offered a toe-tapping, samba-swinging treat.
As a pair, the Brazilians wouldn't look out of place at Manchester City.
Coutinho, in particular, increasingly looks like a Barcelona star in the wrong jersey, which must be an ongoing concern for the Anfield hierarchy.
Nevertheless, as soon as the Reds cross the halfway line, they are an aesthetic treat. They stir the senses in ways beyond every other club outside of the Etihad.
United, Chelsea, Arsenal and even Tottenham Hotspur do not quite intoxicate with the same vigour and consistency as Liverpool, a point reflected in the goals scored column.
Klopp's boys have outscored everyone except Pep Guardiola's men, which makes their fourth position and erratic displays all the more exasperating.
Before kick-off at Anfield, Liverpool had conceded only three fewer than Swansea. Even now, Brighton have let in only two goals more than the Reds.
Quirky statistics can always be cherry-picked - Liverpool have kept clean sheets in three of their last four games, for instance.
But they shipped three in the other game against Arsenal, and Klopp's comments that he's satisfied with his defensive lot smack of political correctness.
He's hardly going to say otherwise.
PUBLIC HUMILIATION
Public humiliation rarely serves as an effective motivational tool - just look at how well it's working with Jose Mourinho's plodders - and Klopp must keep his players onside over an intense festive period.
But at the same time, the German can only watch his devastating forward line - which has scored a magnificent 12 goals in the last three games - and wonder what might have been.
In their previous game, the Reds conceded three times in five minutes against the Gunners. It was a timely reminder that titles aren't won, or even challenged for, with such an unreliable back line.
Mignolet and Dejan Lovren (and perhaps even Klavan) are not the kind of guys that silverware dreams are made of.
Like the wintry clouds rolling in from the Lancashire hills, the threat of a defensive blunder always hangs in the air above Anfield.
Swansea posed no danger, but Leicester City, Burnley and Manchester City most certainly will in upcoming EPL matches.
And it's a genuine shame because Liverpool are proving to be a rare bright spark in a title race that's turning into a procession.
Bums shuffled towards the edge of seats whenever Coutinho, Firmino and Salah were in possession against Swansea.
With Sadio Mane coming off the bench and Adam Lallana returning to fitness, there's a genuine hope that Manchester City will not monopolise all the pretty stuff between now and May.
As Guardiola's wizards run off with the silver, Klopp's counter-attackers still represent the best bet of an alternative attraction.
So perhaps the German could do himself a favour - and the rest of the Premier League - and persuade his American bosses to hand over enough greenbacks to buy a decent centre back (and perhaps a 'keeper, too, as it's a time for giving).
Just five points now separate Liverpool and United. The Red Devils have dropped four points in as many days.
Momentum resides with the men on Merseyside.
Their oldest enemies can still be caught, but only if the Reds can stop being caught out at the back.
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