Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson says the 'season doesn't end' at the final whistle on Sunday - and admitted there's still a lot of points to play for no matter the result.
His side take on their biggest rival of recent years at the Etihad this weekend in a bid to take control of the title race and overtake Manchester City in the table, who currently sit one point clear. It's a highly anticipated fixture with many expecting it to the determine who lifts the trophy in May.
Henderson, though, doesn't see it that way. The experienced Liverpool skipper feels the result 'won't change anything' given there would still be seven games to go in the league after they play City.
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"Obviously if you lose the game it is very difficult," he told liverpoolfc.com. "City don’t drop points, to be honest, so it can be very difficult. But if we win, there’s still a long way to go and a lot of points to play for, so it doesn’t really change anything.
"So, again, yes, we’ll give everything on Sunday but then the season doesn’t end there. There’s still a lot of football, a lot of games, to play and we know that. But full focus on Sunday. We’ll give it everything and see what happens."
The two teams have pushed each other to the extreme in recent seasons, forming a fierce rivalry that has grown in significance over the years. Liverpool missed out on the title in the 2018/19 season by just one point, with the race going down to the final day of the campaign.
Henderson continued: "When you look at some of the numbers and figures and stuff it is mad, really, because when you’ve got someone challenging you all the time it probably pushes you and keeps you on your toes a lot more. Maybe that’s been the case over the last few years because when a team is finishing on 99, 97, 100 [points], whatever it was City finished on, that’s stuff that hasn’t been done before really.
"So yeah, I think it adds to the competition, to the head-to-head if you like, but for me I don’t get too caught up in all that, I just concentrate on each game and performing. Of course the media will big this game up, and rightly so, it is a fantastic game.
"It will be a great game for the neutral I’m sure, but for us it’s business as usual and we go there and try to perform the best we can and try to get a result."
