Liverpool were at their entertaining best today as they thrashed Watford 6-1 in front of a jubilant Anfield crowd.

Sadio Mane opened the scoring after persistent pressure from the home side just past the 20 minute mark, before Philippe Coutinho added a well deserved second.

Emre Can, Roberto Firmino, another Mane goal and a strike from late substitute Georginio Wijnaldum completed the rout. Daryl Janmaat scored the visitors only goal, who continued their poor form away from home.

The three points mean Liverpool sit happy at the top of the Premier League table for the first time under Jurgen Klopp’s stewardship, ahead of rivals Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal.

With the lack of European football, it appears the former Dortmund manager and his side are only going from strength to strength as they continue to bang in the goals. They have found the net on 30 occasions this season, more than any other team.

Today was no exception, so here are five images that sum up today’s rout…

Mane the man

Two more goals for Sadio Mane takes his total for the season to six for his new club having joined from Southampton in the summer.

Many doubted the astronomical fee paid for the Senegalese forward, but he is taking to life at Anfield like a duck to water and proving why he was worth every penny.

Team Spirit

Liverpool are exactly that now, a team.

And today was yet another display of the players playing for each other and for their manager, not as individuals. Come the end of the season, it will be the best team who will emerge Champions, and Liverpool are certainly staking their claim.

A Happy man

You cannot help but adore the charismatic Jurgen Klopp and the German seems happier than ever.

And can you blame him with the way his side are playing? He is rubbing off on those around him and the fans absolutely adore him.

First to everything

While their attack was remarkable, plenty of work was done by Liverpool’s defence and midfield too, who were never second best in a challenge all afternoon.

That graft allows for the likes of Coutinho and Firmino to express themselves, and should not be undervalued.

Anfield rocking

The atmosphere before, during and after today’s game was oddly reminiscent of the Luis Suarez era when Liverpool were all but set to take home the title (thanks Demba Ba).

While they shouldn’t get ahead of themselves, the Liverpool fans are clearly loving life under Jurgen Klopp and will welcome six goal hammerings every weekend if they were on offer.

The Premier League is no stranger to a crazy game, but Bournemouth vs. Liverpool on Sunday may go down as one of the most zany of the season.It’s an often trotted out cliché to say that a game is one of two halves, but the clash at the Vitality Stadium really was, with Jurgen Klopp’s Reds utterly dominant for the first 45 minutes before a collapse, triggered around midway through the second period, saw them throw away a two-goal lead and crash to just their second loss of the season.

Now with over 24 hours having passed, it’s time to dissect the match and see just where it went wrong for the title-chasing Merseysiders, who entered the game anticipating a routine victory over a side expected to be towards the bottom end of the division when game 38 has been played.

We at Football FanCast have been looking at the numbers, and here are FIVE stats that show how it all fell apart…

Defensive shuffling…

Some Liverpool fans were worried when they saw the team-sheet ahead of kick-off. An ankle injury ruled Joel Matip out for the trip to the Dorset coast and although Lucas has proven himself to be a relatively decent option at centre-back, he’s not an orthodox choiceÂin the role.

As shown, Klopp hasn’t been able to field a reliable defensive partnership through much of his reign, with Lucas and Dejan Lovren one of 18 different combinations he’s been forced to field since his arrival at the club.

It’s often said that a settled back three (goalkeeper included) can spread confidence through any team and when the pressure started to come at 1-3 up, the way the Reds faltered illustrated that. It’s also worth noting that Lovren’s best performances have come alongside Matip this term, with the Cameroonian clearly the leader of the two.

The main Mane…

With a goal and an assist, Mane’s job looked to be done at 1-3 up, so his exit due to a slight injury was, although a concern, not seen as a massive deal by Kopites watching on.

Withdrawn on 69 minutes, just seven minutes later Ryan Fraser made it 2-3, then shortly after (two minutes, to be precise) Steve Cook netted what may be the goal of his career to make it 3-3.

As soon as Mane hobbled off, Liverpool lost the pace from wide that was frightening Bournemouth, which gave their full-backs freedom to push up and robbed the RedsÂof an outlet to open up the Cherries on the counter-attack.

Lionel Fraser…

Ryan Fraser was truly excellent at the Vitality Stadium. The Scot, who has been away from the club on loan in recent times, came on ten minutes after the half-time interval for the injured Junior Stanislas and ran the show.

As the numbers demonstrate, he was influential beyond his goal and assists, with his two tackles showing that he tracked back, while his key pass and dribble is an illustration of his effective performance in the final third.

Shots fired…

It may be harsh to judge Loris Karius after letting in a penalty-kick, but the below stat was dropped by Squawka when Callum Wilson’s effort nestled in the net…

The German went on to concede another three times and although he did make a smart save to keep Benik Afobe out when the striker went through one-on-one, he really could have done more to stop Ryan Fraser’s relatively tame right-footed effort, while his inability to handle Steve Cook’s speculative shot from distance, which allowed Nathan Ake to net the winner, may render his relationship with Reds fans beyond repair.

Ake’s rejuvenation

Liverpool fans may remember that Nathan Ake netted against them last season while on loan at Watford, and he’s quickly becoming one of those bogey players for the Reds.

The defender was good at both ends of the pitch, though, and it should be noted that he was denied what looked to be a clear penalty when Roberto Firmino felled him in the box during the first half.

Interestingly, Ake is on loan from Liverpool’s title rivals, Chelsea. That winner was a bitter blow, then.

Christmas is here! The time we have all been waiting for, a day of over-eating, grotesque amounts of TV and saying thank you for gifts that you would much rather not have had to open. The build-up has been long and the preparation intense… much like the summer before a Premier League campaign, in fact.

It’s time for some festive cheer, though. Premier League football might be keeping a few of you a little stressed, but there are plenty of distractions around the football world to make you smile. Some of them are just found by searching through Vine for anything, particularly if it involves Tony Pulis laughing or an Arsenal Fan TV meltdown.

Luckily for you we’ve taken some time to compile a rather amusing Premier League list of lookalikes. There are millions of them, in truth, but few as eyebrow-raising as this TEN.

If you have any other suggestions feel free to send them in, of course…

Jurgen Klopp + Stephen Merchant

Jurgen Klopp is already a pretty popular man around the Premier League, but he would be even more popular if he were as funny as The Office creator, Stephen Merchant. Merchant is admittedly a fair bit taller than the Liverpool manager, and we reckon they would be a good pair to go for a pint with.

Maybe Klopp can fill in for Merchant in his next presenting or film role? One issue, actually, that German accent could give it all away before the fun has even begun.

Sean Dyche + Walter White

Admittedly Walter White is not actually a real person, but the Breaking Bad lead bears a frankly haunting resemblance to Burnley’s manager.

Sean Dyche has been a recent champion of ‘Proper Football Men’ and his continued paranoia about foreign managers perhaps belongs under a hat similar to Walter White’s.

Then again, there are probably a fair few men across the world that look similar to Dyche.

Mesut Ozil + Enzo Ferrari

Enzo Ferrari, if you hadn’t worked it out, is the founder of Ferrari. Funny, that. The Italian once looked rather similar to another great creator, Mesut Ozil.

The former racing driver might have invented one of the world’s most recognisable brands, but did he ever score against Ludogorets Razgrad in the Champions League group stage? Because, as we now know, that’s the real test of an individual.

Jamie Vardy + Lee Chapman

That’s right, it’s that bloke who jumped on the Leicester City bandwagon because he looked like Jamie Vardy. Lee Chapman was everywhere earlier this year and, one would imagine, made a fair bit of cash off the back of Vardy’s zero to hero tale.

Vardy has now returned to the mediocrity of midtable and Chapman is probably still trying to organise events in dodgy student clubs.

Olivier Giroud + Errol Flynn

Perhaps a little obscure, this, but Errol Flynn and Olivier Giroud do look rather similar. Flynn was a Hollywood actor in the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s, which meant that he did not have to suffer being called a fraud on Twitter.

We can’t help wondering how Giroud’s acting would fare if he tried to crack Hollywood like Flynn. So long as he didn’t have any roles that involved running it would probably go okay we reckon.

Owen Hargreaves + Richard Madden

Richard Madden is fortunate that he only looks like Owen Hargreaves. Madden’s career has not been disrupted by injury in quite the same way luckily, but the Game of Thrones star could probably talk his way onto the BT Sport sofas.

Maybe Madden would finally tell some of those pundits that they’re talking utter nonsense? Or perhaps Hargreaves could pursue a career in film?

That said, looking similar doesn’t actually mean they have to become the same people.

Ian Wright + Michael Clarke Duncan

It’s the cheeky grin that makes it for these two. Finding a picture of either Wright or Duncan not smiling is one of the hardest challenges known to man.

Duncan’s Hollywood career included award nominations and key roles in numerous successful films, including The Green Mile and Kung Fu Panda.

Jose Mourinho + Jack Dee

Two of the world’s grumpiest men happen to look rather similar, particularly when they’re both developing that lazy stubble. Mourinho and Dee would probably get on rather well, but Dee’s miserable rants are at least done with the intention of humour.

Then again, the creator of Lead Balloon could probably do a better job of motivating players than Mourinho has done over the past 18 months. What a pairing, though, maybe Mourinho will be hosting Live At The Apollo soon.

Kevin de Bruyne + The Shermanator

We can only dream that Kevin De Bruyne is as ludicrous in person as The Shermanator. American Pie’s resident creepy outcast is an icon of the series. Well, a hero in a sense, I suppose. Making fleeting appearances throughout the films, The Shermanator flickers in and out of the series just like De Bruyne does throughout a season.

Okay, they aren’t exactly a spitting image of one another, but it’s all good Christmas fun, anyway.

Nacho Monreal + Peter Crouch

Last but not least, it’s two footballers!

Yep, two actual Premier League footballers. Well, Crouch does not really play much anymore, he spends most of his time trotting up and down the touchline. Monreal, though, has become one of Europe’s most reliable full-backs in the last few seasons.

Despite the fact that there is nearly a foot in height difference, there’s something facially that’s a bit similar, isn’t there? No? Just me then…

In recent years, Celtic have had an excellent track record in signing young, talented players from Europe and beyond, having them at the club for a season or two before moving them on for big bucks to the English Premier League.There aren’t many advantages to being in the shadow of the massive money swilling around England, but an exposure from English media and a direct path to the Premier League were a big part of attracting the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Victor Wanyama to Celtic in the first place.While at times this model has been a source of frustration for some Celtic fans, believing the club should hold on to their top talent as long as possible, you can’t deny that overall it has brought great success and moderate wealth to the club.Celtic fans won’t forgive us for looking at their squad and thinking “who’s next?” but it is a reality they must contend with. Moussa Dembele is hitting the headlines this season as a player in line for a big money move, but for us there’s another that could beat him to it. His name is Tom Rogic.Here are THREE reasons why he is Celtic’s next big export to the Premier League…

Goal scoring magic

Since returning from a long-term injury that kept him on the sidelines at Celtic, Tom Rogic has scored 20 goals in 62 appearances from attacking midfield. Many of them have been absolute beauties, like the one highlighted above.

That ability to score from nothing situations and from distance is usually only seen in the most elite players.

He does it in key situations too. That goal against Kilmarnock was in the dying moments of a game Celtic had to win in the league, with Aberdeen breathing down their neck at the time in a race for the title.

Celtic often play against deep defences in the Scottish Premiership but Rogic has found one way of bypassing them completely on a regular basis.

He’s a big game, big time player. That ruthless streak would surely serve English Premier League teams well.

He looked very comfortable vs. Man City

When Celtic visited the Etihad in December, they put in a performance that proved they belong at Champions League level. Despite finishing bottom of the group, the Hoops put in credable performances away to Borussia Monchengladbach and Man City, earning draws. They also held City at home in a memorable 3-3 draw.

Tom Rogic was a star throughout Celtic’s European campaign and was arguably the best player on the pitch that night at the Etihad. Up against the likes of Ilkay Gundogan, he didn’t look out of place one bit and in fact used his skill and trickery on multiple occasions to outfox the opposition.

As one Celtic fan on Twitter put it on the night:

He’s managed to prove he has what it takes to compete against the best the Premier League has to offer.

National hero

Tom Rogic has always been considered one of Australia’s top prospects, often excelling for his country before his breakthrough at Celtic. However, his recent emergence into a Champions League calibre player has ‘soccer’ fans all over Australia eager to see what his next career move is.

There hasn’t been this much buzz about a player from the country since the likes of Harry Kewell and Tim Cahill were plying their trade and we all know how effective they were in the Premier League.

With 5 goals and 23 caps at the age of just 24, Rogic is destined to become an Aussie soccer legend if his upward trajectory continues.

Second meets fifth in a Saturday evening clash. Manchester City host Tottenham Hotspur, with the home side lingering outside the Champions League places. That said, Pep Guardiola’s side are only three points off Mauricio Pochettino’s men, as the battle in the chasing pack heats up.

It is a tense period of the season, with several meetings between the top clubs in the next few weeks, and each match has the potential to set a team back a long way.

The recent history between these two teams is fascinating. From thrashings to disciplined team performances, Tottenham have had a turbulent relationship with their Manchester City fixtures. This Spurs side is different, though, and does not suffer from the same vulnerabilities as previous Lilywhite editions.

Pochettino has his team well-drilled, tactically savvy and functioning as a well-oiled unit. His opponent, Guardiola, is yet to find the answers for City as they continue to leak goals. However, Pochettino still has three key issues to address before kickoff…

Beware of the Backlash

Manchester City’s humiliation at Goodison Park last time will be fresh in the memory come kick-off. Regardless of comments from Guardiola or discussions the players may have had about ‘moving on’, it is not easy to forget a 4-0 thrashing.

That memory will serve as motivation. The motivation of revenge over Tottenham is present, too, setting the Lilywhites an additional challenge. Manchester City will see this match, rightly so, as a final chance to prove their credentials as champions. Defeat here and they can wave goodbye to a third Premier League crown.

Stick or Twist

Last time Spurs and Manchester City met, Mauricio Pochettino’s side set up in a 4-1-4-1 and produced one of the performances of the season to pip Pep’s men 2-0. City were flying high at that point and looked set to walk towards the league title, while the Lilywhites were only just awaking from their dopey start to the season.

Times are different now, but it presents a tricky decision for Pochettino. The 4-1-4-1 worked wonderfully back in October, but it has been the 3-4-3 system that has been dominant during Spurs’ recent strong form.

Rejigging Defence

Jan Vertonghen has been ruled out for over two months through injury and this leaves Pochettino with a dilemma defensively. Vertonghen has been integral in the success of the back three, supporting the play down the inside-left channel when Spurs have had sustained possession, and is one of the league’s best defenders.

While Kevin Wimmer presents a good backup option, Pochettino may favour adding a body to the midfield against City and reverting back to a four-man backline.

As reported by The Daily Mirror, the real reason Salomon Rondon is unhappy and out of form right now has nothing to do with a big money offer from China.

What’s the story?

Salomon Rondon is bang out of form right now and West Brom badly need him to start performing or risk dropping into the bottom half of the table.

The Mirror report that despite being the subject of a £32m bid from Chinese side Tianjin Quanjin, that’s not the reason he’s unhappy right now.

Quoted by the paper, West Brom boss Tony Pulis said:

There’s lots of stuff going on around Salomon and I’ve got to make sure he’s focused. It’s not football stuff. It’s nothing to do with the speculation. It’s a personal thing to do with his family back in Venezuela.

Baggies fans will be hoping the big striker can sort out his personal problems, first and foremost for his benefit, but of course also be eager to see him start banging in goals again.

With the Chinese Super League transfer window not shut until the February, The Mirror say West Brom are concerned Tianjin Quanjin come back in with a higher offer.

What’s he capable of?

Rondon had a good start to the season, scoring seven goals in his first seventeen matches this term. His good form culminated in a superb performance against Swansea at The Hawthorns when he fired a hat-trick past the visitors.

He hasn’t contributed to a goal since, an eight game streak that West Brom fans are desperate to see end.

There’s no doubting that the club’s record signing has what it takes to be an excellent Premier League striker, as Pulis said, it’s all about keeping him focused on the task at hand.

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Liverpool and Tottenham meet on Saturday in a battle that will pit two of the strongest clubs in the Premier League against one another.

Spurs sit second in the table but are a whole nine points back on Chelsea, so a win is crucial if they want to keep pace and possibly challenge the Blues for the title. Tottenham are coming off a 1-0 win against Middlesbrough and will be eager to continue their recent good run.

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The Reds, on the other hand, are still in the midst of a slump that has yet to see them win a match in Premier League play in 2017. Jurgen Klopp’s side have dropped to fifth in the table and are coming off a disappointing 2-0 defeat to Hull. They need a win if they are to salvage their season and get the ball rolling in the right direction.

Liverpool’s attack has been struggling of late and will have a tough task against the Tottenham defence, which is one of the best, surrendering a league-low 16 goals.

Both clubs are desperately in need of the win, but which one will rise to the occasion and take it?

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As reported by The Daily Mirror, Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s Manchester United future has been thrown into doubt with the striker stalling on a signing up for another season at the club.

What’s the story?

Ibrahimovic signed a one year deal with United last summer, with the option of another if both parties agreed to such a thing. Now though, the Swedish legend is having doubts.

That’s according to The Mirror, who say that Ibrahimovic has an ambition to play for a UEFA Champions League side next season before he heads of to lesser teams in MLS or similar.

United are currently 6th in the table, two points behind the necessary 4th place required to quality for Europe’s biggest club competition.

Key man

Ibrahimovic has arguably been Jose Mourinho’s key man this season as he looks to build a side capable of competing for serious silverware and be able to sustain a significant title challenge.

Despite being the grand old age of 36, the strikers has banged in an incredible 24 goals in all competitions for the Red Devils so far this term.

Having him sticking around for another year is vital to Mourinho’s rebuilding efforts and he must be doing everything in his power to keep the red hot striker at Old Trafford.

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Over the last decade or so Chelsea fans have experienced a level of success unseen previously in the club’s history. Since 2004/05 they’ve won four league titles, four FA Cups, three league cups, one UEFA Europa League and of course the big one, a UEFA Champions League trophy.

Central to much of that success was Didier Drogba, an iconic goalscoring hero whose impact on the club will likely be remembered for decades to come.

In two spells at the club he made an incredible 381 appearances, scoring 164 goals and generally providing the combative physical presence in the final third that the Blues needed for success.

Of the thirteen major honours listed above won by Chelsea, Drogba was involved in a massive twelve of them, underlining just how important he was to the team in his time at Stamford Bridge.

Now Chelsea fans have voted overwhelming to name him as their greatest ever striker, with 88% of respondents to our poll agreeing he should be considered the best.

It also just so happens to be his birthday today, so this is our present from us to him, Happy 39th Birthday Didier!

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According to reports in The Sun, Everton striker Romelu Lukaku is a summer transfer target for Chelsea, Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus after telling the club he won’t be signing a new deal.

What’s the story, then?

Well, despite reports on talkSPORT last week that Lukaku was on the verge of signing a new five-year contract at Goodison Park, the 23-year-old instead told the club on Tuesday that he would be turning down a deal that would make him the highest-paid player in Everton’s history as he wants to play Champions League football.

That news would have alerted the Belgian’s former club Chelsea – who tried to bring the attacker back to Stamford Bridge last summer – and Manchester United, while Juventus and Real Madrid could also be interested as they look to strengthen their attacking options this summer.

Could he leave this summer?

It depends on a few things.

Firstly, will Ronald Koeman still want a player that he knows doesn’t really want to be at the club? The Dutchman did have a similar situation when he was in charge of Southampton with one of his current players Morgan Schneiderlin, who was convinced to stay at St Mary’s for another year before making his exit.

However, with Lukaku’s contract not running out until 2019, they could easily tell him that he has to honour it.

Secondly, it could depend on the offers that come in.

The Toffees aren’t exactly short of cash and they won’t need to accept any old bid, meaning it could take a enormous amount of money to convince the Merseyside club to cash in on the striker.

How would Everton replace him?

It would be difficult.

The Belgian is the joint-top goalscorer in the top flight this season with 19 goals, and he also recently became the club’s all-time leading marksman in the Premier League era with a current total of 62 even though he is yet to finish his fourth season at Goodison.

It isn’t easy to find someone as prolific as that, but they would certainly trust director of football Steve Walsh, who discovered N’Golo Kante for Leicester, to find an able replacement.