Do Liverpool’s 2019 stats make them the Premier League team of the decade?

They might not have won the Premier League yet, but Liverpool’s 2019 statistics suggest they are one of the division’s teams of the decade.

In a period where Manchester City, Manchester United and Chelsea all won multiple titles, Jurgen Klopp’s side are pursuing their first.

But when considering calendar year statistics, the Reds’ 2019 vintage stacks up to any opposition.

The new Invincibles?

The Reds lost just one league game during the 2018-19 season – where they recorded the highest runners-up points tally in PL history (97) – as eventual champions Manchester City beat Klopp’s side 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium.

It proved to be the only thing that stopped the German guiding his side to the title and that January 3 clash remained their only loss of 2019.

No other Premier League team managed to record just one league defeat in a calendar year this decade, with Manchester United (2010) and City (2017) coming closest, each losing twice.

While City managed to win the 2018-19 title with Liverpool breathing down their necks however, they were unable to keep pace with their rivals once 2019-20 began – the Reds have achieved this not due to the absence of defeats so much as an abundance of wins.

Raising the bar

While Arsenal remain the only team to go unbeaten in the Premier League, Arsene Wenger’s 2003-04 side recorded 12 draws from 38 games – Liverpool are currently unbeaten too, but have drawn just once in 19.

The absence of draws has helped Klopp’s team win more league games in 2019 than any other Premier League side managed in a calendar year in the 2010s, notching 31 victories from 37.

Three other sides recorded 30 wins in a calendar year in the 2010s – City in 2017 and 2019 and United in 2012 – but none have equalled the Anfield side.

Liverpool managed to win 17 in a row across the back end of the 2018-19 season and the start of 2019-20, before a draw against Manchester United was followed by 10 consecutive wins to close out the year.

Points mean prizes

Points are the only currency that matters in league football, and the Reds have raised the bar for calendar year performance in 2019 with a truly remarkable haul.

Liverpool’s points per game (PPG) average of 2.65 in 2019 is by some distance the best of the 2010s, with City’s 2017 vintage scoring 0.2 PPG poorer at 2.45.

Some years have seen teams play more games than others, but when applying that PPG to a 38-game average, Liverpool’s dominance becomes clear – they would have accrued 100.6 points had they played 38 times in 2019.

Perhaps most remarkable however is that Liverpool’s 2019 points tally (98) is equal to City’s 2017 tally, despite the Reds having played just 37 games compared to City’s 40.

Liverpool’s statistical achievements in the league this year might not have won them any silverware, but they have laid the foundations for a second half of the campaign in which they are almost certain to clinch their first title in 30 years.