How Liverpool's fixtures compare to Man City and Arsenal's for the rest of 2023
With the November international break now well and truly over, the onslaught of festive fixtures is on the horizon.
Liverpool passed their first test, picking up a very respectable point against Manchester City at the Etihad last Saturday. Given that the current European champions had won their last 23 home games in a row, Jurgen Klopp can be very proud of his side's result.
But the hectic winter schedule is rarely forgiving, games crammed in to every nook and cranny.
For Liverpool, the festive period has often been where the Reds have come unstuck. With Klopp's men in the midst of a perhaps unexpected title challenge with Arsenal and current holders Man City, hopefully that's not the case this year.
The Reds have nine games remaining in 2023 across three different competitions - a Carabao Cup quarter-final, some mighty Premier League clashes and Liverpool's final Europa League group stage games.
But how do the Reds' fixtures compare to their title rivals' for the remainder of 2023?
ARSENAL'S FIXTURES
Having now leapfrogged Liverpool and Man City in the Premier League table with their 1-0 win over Brentford at the weekend, Arsenal also have nine games left this calendar year.
Unlike Liverpool, they are no longer in the Carabao Cup, but do have Champions League matches with Lens and PSV Eindhoven still to play.
That means the Gunners have seven Premier League matches remaining in 2023, one more than Liverpool.
All in all, Arsenal have a fairly straightforward festive period. Their first three league games are Wolverhampton Wanderers (H), Luton Town (A) and Aston Villa (A). The latter stands out as the most challenging, former Gunners boss Unai Emery having turned Villa Park into a fortress.
A meeting with Brighton (H) is followed by a trip to Anfield in what could be a pivotal clash in regards to who finds themselves top of the table at Christmas. Liverpool haven't lost to Arsenal on Merseyside since 2012, drawing last season's fixture 2-2 despite having gone two goals down.
Mikel Arteta's side have just the two fixtures after Christmas day in 2023 against West Ham (H) and Fulham (A), matches the Gunners should win relatively comfortably.
- 29/11/23 - Arsenal vs Lens
- 02/12/23 - Arsenal vs Wolves
- 05/12/23 - Luton vs Arsenal
- 09/12/23 - Aston Villa vs Arsenal
- 12/12/23 - PSV vs Arsenal
- 17/12/23 - Arsenal vs Brighton
- 23/12/23 - Liverpool vs Arsenal
- 28/12/23 - Arsenal vs West Ham
- 31/12/23 - Fulham vs Arsenal
MAN CITY'S FIXTURES
Man City's festive fixture list involves a lot of travel and as many as ten games - although only six will come in the Premier League.
Pep Guardiola's side will be travelling to Saudi Arabia to take part in the 2023 FIFA Club World Cup just before Christmas, playing two matches should they make it past the semi-final.
There are also clashes with RB Leipzig and FK Crvena Zvezda in the Champions League, the latter involving a trip to Serbia.
Despite a couple of difficult fixtures at the beginning of December, Man City also enjoy a relatively routine fixture list in the Premier League for the remainder of 2023.
Games with Tottenham (H) and Aston Villa (A) are to come in their next two matches, followed by a trip to Kenilworth Road to face Luton - a game Liverpool drew earlier this season.
A clash with Crystal Palace (H), who boast a surprisingly good record against the Cityzens, will come before they jet off to Asia for the Club World Cup, after which there are fixtures with Everton (A) and Sheffield United before New Year's Day.
The added workload attached to their Club World Cup campaign could make the more simplistic fixtures against Everton and Sheffield United problematic, but you wouldn't expect Man City to drop too many points in the rest of 2023.
- 28/11/23 - Man City vs Leipzig
- 03/12/23 - Man City vs Tottenham
- 06/12/23 - Aston Villa vs Man City
- 10/12/23 - Luton vs Man City
- 13/12/23 - Crvena Zvezda vs Man City
- 16/12/23 - Man City vs Crystal Palace
- 19/12/23 - Leon/Urawa Diamonds vs Man City
- 22/12/23 - Club World Cup final (should Man City progress)
- 27/12/23 - Everton vs Man City
- 30/12/23 - Man City vs Sheffield United
LIVERPOOL'S FIXTURES
While Liverpool's fixture list for the rest of 2023 isn't incredibly difficult, the Reds do face several big encounters.
There is, of course, a Carabao Cup quarter-final against West Ham, as well as matches against LASK and Union Saint-Gilloise in the Europa League - the latter involving a trip to Belgium.
There are six Premier League games on the horizon for the Reds. December starts with some appetising clashes, matches with Fulham (H), Sheffield United (A) and Crystal Palace (A) coming in the space of six days at the beginning of the month.
The Carabao Cup meeting with the Hammers is sandwiched in between big matches with Manchester United and Arsenal, both of which come at Anfield.
The game with Arsenal will be big, but the visit of Man Utd is always one of the Reds' most significant games of any season. God knows what form the Red Devils will be in by then, but a repeat of last year's 7-0 would be nice, wouldn't it?
Liverpool close out December with a trip to struggling Burnley and, while not in 2023, Klopp's men then face a home clash with Newcastle United on New Year's Day.
- 30/11/23 - Liverpool vs LASK
- 03/12/23 - Liverpool vs Fulham
- 06/12/23 - Sheffield United vs Liverpool
- 09/12/23 - Crystal Palace vs Liverpool
- 14/12/23 - Union SG vs Liverpool
- 17/12/23 - Liverpool vs Man Utd
- 20/12/23 - Liverpool vs West Ham
- 23/12/23 - Liverpool vs Arsenal
- 26/12/23 - Burnley vs Liverpool