Former Liverpool manager Gerard Houllier believes his old club should be awarded the Premier League title even if the season is not completed because of the COVID-19 crisis.
Liverpool are 25 points clear at the top with nine games left to play in the Premier League, which has been on hold since March 9 as the novel coronavirus spread across the globe.
According to Houllier, who led Liverpool to FA Cup and UEFA Cup glory in 2001 during his six-year spell at Anfield, Juergen Kloppโs team would be deserved champions.
Asked if they should be awarded their first top-flight title since 1990, the former France coach told TalkSport: โYeah. Thatโs what they did in France. They gave it to Paris St Germain. They had a 12-point lead and I think Liverpool needed just two games to win the title.
โIf there was a difference of maybe two or three points then you could argue it takes some chances away from teams behind but 25 points there is no way they wouldnโt be champions. They deserve it.โ
Houllier, now an adviser to Olympique Lyonnais president Jean-Michel Aulas, added that the Premier League should follow the governmentโs lead on whether to resume.
โI think they should follow the governmentโs rules. If the government decides we stop then we have to abide by that,โ he explained.
โSecond, maybe wait a little bit because we donโt know what itโs going to be like in a fortnight or in three weeks time.โ
REUTERS
