Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson were the final players to drag themselves away from the celebrations in front of the triumphant away end.
Two seasoned campaigners who know what it takes to be crowned Premier League champions, who have experienced the ecstasy and agony of chasing English football’s biggest prize.
They will tell you that nothing has been achieved yet. They will point to the fact that Liverpool were top of the league on Christmas Day in both 2018-19 and 2020-21, and were chased down.
Arsenal provide more cautionary tales given that they led the way at this stage in the past two seasons and ended up with nothing to show for their efforts. Liverpool were only a point adrift when the presents were handed out a year ago but finished a distant third after the wheels came off during the run-in.
The road to glory remains long and littered with obstacles, but as Van Dijk and Robertson gazed up at the scoreboard inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as they walked towards the tunnel, there was no escaping the fact that another statement of intent had been issued by Arne Slot’s side.
Tottenham 3 Liverpool 6. What a way to move four points clear with a game in hand. What a platform they have.
This wasn’t just a victory, it was a demolition. The numbers were ridiculous — Liverpool had 24 shots, 12 on target, they created nine big chances (as defined by Opta), and their xG (expected goals) was 4.60.
Yes, at 5-1 up with half an hour still to play, they got sloppy and allowed Spurs to restore a modicum of pride, but if complacency creeping in after scoring five is your biggest problem then you’re in decent shape.
What a contrast to Liverpool’s visit in September 2023 when Luis Diaz had a goal wrongly disallowed by a VAR debacle, Curtis Jones and Diogo Jota were sent off, and Joel Matip’s late own goal consigned Jurgen Klopp’s side to a cruel defeat.
Liverpool left Tottenham stunned (GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)
Imagine someone telling you then that Liverpool would return 15 months later with Klopp gone and having failed to strengthen the squad. Common sense would have dictated a sizeable drop-off, but instead they stand as a superior force, brimming with belief.
That’s testament to Slot and how he has galvanised the talent he inherited. The Dutchman’s record of 21 wins out of 25 games in charge in all competitions is astonishing. It’s just the third time in the club’s history that they have reached Christmas Day in a season still unbeaten away from home (1893-94 and 1987-88 were the other campaigns).
There was so much to admire on Sunday — not least the speed, precision and relentlessness of their attacking play as they tormented Spurs’ depleted backline. How they built sweeping moves from back to front, the movement, the composure, the selfless team ethic and ruthless edge.
None of their title rivals boast such an array of firepower. None of them have anyone quite like Mohamed Salah, who enjoyed another record-breaking afternoon with two goals and two assists.
GO DEEPER
Tottenham 3 Liverpool 6: Slot’s side top of league at Christmas, Gray day, smart Szoboszlai
As well as becoming the first Premier League player in history to reach double figures for league goals and assists in a season before Christmas, the Egypt forward moved above Billy Liddell into fourth place in the club’s all-time scoring list.
For context, Liddell, whose influence was so great between 1946 and 1960 that the team became known as ‘Liddellpool’, scored 228 goals for the club across 534 appearances. Salah has collected his 229 goals in just 373 matches across seven and a half years.
With 18 goals and 15 assists in 24 appearances in all competitions this season, Salah, 32, boasts a goal involvement every 60 minutes. As discussions over his future rumble on, he continues to defy Father Time.
Slot’s decision to use Luis Diaz in the false nine role at times this season has proved inspired. The versatile Colombia forward, who hadn’t netted since his hat-trick against Bayer Leverkusen in the Champions League last month, ended his barren seven-game streak with two clinical finishes.
Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez came off the bench with Federico Chiesa not even in the matchday squad.
The midfield unit of Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai controlled throughout.
This was right up there with Szoboszlai’s best display for the club since his arrival from RB Leipzig as his athleticism was accompanied by an eye-catching contribution in the final third. Slot has challenged him to add more goals and assists to his game and this was a step in the right direction.
Szoboszlai, who was praised by Slot, hugs Salah (GLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty Images)
Heavily involved in Liverpool’s second and fourth goals, he scored the third after tucking away Salah’s pass and then returned the compliment in the second half. Szoboszlai won six of his eight duels.
“It was maybe our best performance away from home,” Slot said. “It was total dominance and we outplayed them many times. We scored six goals and could have scored more.
“Mo and Lucho (Diaz) were maybe the ones that stood out in terms of scoring goals, but we would not do justice to Dom’s performance if we didn’t name him as well. Apart from the attacking things he did, he was also a very important part of our game plan without the ball. That’s what he executed very well.”
With full-backs Trent Alexander-Arnold and Robertson providing deliveries from wide areas, Liverpool were able to hurt the hosts from all kinds of different angles. Then you had Joe Gomez, so commanding alongside Van Dijk as he deputises for Ibrahima Konate.
Can Liverpool stay out in front? It feels more sustainable than last season when energy-sapping late salvage acts helped keep them in contention until the spring.
The bench looks strong too. Yes, there was a recent blip with frustrating draws against Newcastle United and Fulham, but the squad is healthier with only Konate and Conor Bradley now sidelined.
Unlike previous title challenges which fell short in the Klopp era, they don’t need to worry about Manchester City this time. The unexpected crisis at the Etihad has consigned Pep Guardiola’s side to the status of also-rans. It’s Chelsea and Arsenal who stand between Liverpool and a 20th top-flight crown.
“Of course it means something,” said Slot when asked about being top at Christmas.
“You always prefer to be where we are than in another position in the table. But you know as well as I know — I have won the league once (with Feyenoord) — how hard it is to stay at the top.
“You have to be on top of your game for every minute. I didn’t expect Chelsea to drop points today (against Everton), but it can happen in any game and that’s what makes this league so special.”
(Top photo: Van Dijk and Mac Allister at full-time. Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
