Matches with Real Madrid and City means this is a statement week for Liverpool

There are very few clubs in the world that can match the global impact and reach of the Spanish giants Real Madrid.

However, Liverpool Football Club are one of the few that can stand to Los Blancos in terms of history, success and worldly reach, so it is only natural that when these two clubs meet all eyes in the football world lock in.

The Reds and Madrid have battled in a pair of Champions League finals in recent years as well as locking horns in the Round of 16 a few seasons ago.

Hosting Real in the Champions League at Anfield on its own is enough to make this an important week, but on Sunday a struggling Manchester City awaits in the Premier League.

Let's take a look at what this week could mean for Liverpool.

A Reds win could put Real on red alert for UCL qualification

Real Madrid have already lost twice in the Champions League this season so while they aren't yet fully in must-win, they are inching towards it.

An emphatic Liverpool win would see Real scrambling for answers going forward and it could also mean they must play an extra knockout tie. This would directly weaken one of our direct rivals in the competition so that could be huge.

However, in addition to that, a Reds win could exercise some past demons that are surely still evident from losing both of those UCL Finals and being humiliated 5-2 on their home ground.

There are still several players in this squad that should remember those crushing results very clearly and will want to make amends.

With the news that Vinicius Jr. is going to miss the match due to injury, Arne Slot must have the boys ready to take advantage and get one over on Kylian Mbappe, showing him what could have been.

City's title challenge hanging by a thread

Slot has come in and taken the Premier League by storm this season and his side have raced out to a wholly impressive 8-point lead at the summit over the champions, Man City.

This has also been aided by City hitting their worst patch of form under Pep Guardiola, losing 5 consecutive matches in all comps. That has allowed Liverpool to break away and a win on Sunday would all but end the Citizens realistic 2024/25 Premier League hunt.

The opportunity to put down your biggest rival for the league crown in late November does not come around very often, which is why I fully expect this match to be of the highest quality once again.

Anfield is always up for this fixture and seeing them limp into the match will only increase the ravenous expectation from the fans going into kickoff.

This is where the measured tactics of Slot could come into play nicely and while it might not be the barnstorm we became accustomed to under "Pep vs Klopp", it could be just the perfect way to counter a desperate but talented side coming in with one goal in mind.

It's an important week, but not the end

Obviously you'd love a win in both of these fixtures to stamp our authority across the continent as perhaps the best team going right now.

However, a win and a draw, or even a pair of draws will not signal the end of the tremendous form under Arne Slot, quite the contrary. Going toe-to-toe with two heavyweights of the sport in the same week is a challenge that does not happen often so any positive results should be celebrated.

Even if it all goes perfect, there is still so much work to do and I do not think this new coaching regime will let the players get too far ahead of themselves.

This could be a great launching pad into the new year and beyond as this will mark the end of an absolutely brutal run of games for the Reds.

It's going to be a wonderful week for historians of the sport, media and fans alike. These are the fixtures and moments that we yearn for at a club like ours, as everyone does. Let's make it count.