LONDON – Leaders Liverpool are on a mission in this second half of the English Premier League – to win the title for manager Jurgen Klopp in his final season in charge.

The Reds beat Norwich City 5-2 in the FA Cup fourth round over the weekend, following Klopp’s bombshell announcement on Jan 26, and will now return to league action when they host Chelsea on Jan 31.

The Premier League is probably what matters most now – although Liverpool still can win the FA Cup, the League Cup final against Chelsea and the Europa League – and Klopp will be hoping to extend their lead at the top of the table.

For now, the German is focusing on the Blues and not the Premier League title just yet.

“They play really good stuff, really good team. A team in form, I think. Won majority of games recently,” he said.

“We play them in first matchday (1-1 draw), we weren’t great but they were pretty good. A point was all right. We have to do better but we are different now.

“They had a lot of injuries but now they have a core group together. They have the midfield they want together, the entire back-line other than Reece James.

“A really good team, even if you can’t see it in the table yet. I expect them to make big steps.”

Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 22 Premier League fixtures at Anfield, a run that started way back in October 2022.

But it is not only their home form that has been impressive, as the Reds have shown this season that they can fight back from adversity.

They have won 19 points from losing positions, so if things do not go their way against Chelsea, they would likely still battle all the way till the end to get a positive result.

Liverpool will again be without their talisman Mohamed Salah, but fellow forwards Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota have stepped up in his absence and could be key in this match.

Both players were on the scoresheet against Norwich and are expected to continue the momentum.

In the Premier League, Nunez has three goals and an assist in his last three games, while Jota has three goals and three assists during same run.

The Reds will be missing the injured Joe Matip, Stefan Bajcetic, Thiago Alcantara and Konstantinos Tsimikas, while Wataru Endo is at the Asian Cup with Japan.

As Klopp prepares to wind down his Liverpool tenure, Thai police have warned fans in the country not to fall for online scammers impersonating Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso, hotly tipped to replace the German in the summer.

The Central Investigation Bureau told supporters to watch out for a viral message purporting to show the Spaniard’s Instagram account asking for donations of 300 baht (S$11.40) to help pay his air fare.

“I am Xabi Alonso, I will be in charge of Liverpool next season, but I am short of money for my flights to Liverpool,” said the message, written in Thai.

The police, in response, posted on Facebook: “Liverpool fans, calm down. Xabi is not yet the manager, but there is already a scammer (pretending to be Xabi).”

Liverpool are among the best-supported teams in Thailand, with red shirts and club crests adorning everything from people to taxis and shops.

Chelsea, meanwhile, will hope to spoil Klopp’s party but they are still dealing with a long injury list – James, Marc Cucurella, Wesley Fofana, Robert Sanchez and Levi Colwill are all still out.

The Blues have lost just once in their last seven matches in all competitions but their away form is a concern, as they have lost five of their previous six games.

“It’s a great opportunity for us to face a team that is doing really well,” said manager Mauricio Pochettino. “Special game for him (Klopp). Until the end... every time they play at Anfield, it’s going to be a party always, to celebrate and to give him all the love they feel, the fans feel for him and it’s deserved.

“But we are thinking to go there and win. Sorry, but we don’t want to be part of the celebration. We want to perform well and win the game.” AFP