When Chelsea last locked horns with Man City, the feeling in the Liverpool camp was very different.As Thomas Tuchel and Pep Guardiolas men faced off in the Champions League final in Porto back in May, Jurgen Klopps side were battered and bruised after a dismal title defence decimated by injury left them just grateful to have a place in Europes elite competition the following year.Reds fans watched on enviously as two of their fiercest rivals fought it out for their beloved European Cup, hurting to see either side lift the famous trophy but hurt even more by the knowledge that their side had been nowhere near good enough to compete for such a prize themselves.European champions in 2019, Liverpool ended 30 years of hurt to lift a maiden Premier League title in 2020 but just as they dared to dream about the Reds building a new bastion of invincibility, the 2020/21 campaign halted them in their tracks.Derailed by injuries, was Klopps sides time at the top really already over, with City and Chelsea providing a painful reminder of how far they had fallen behind?READ MORE: 'We saw from his eyes' - the day Jurgen Klopp 'almost' had a fight with James Milner in Liverpool dressing roomSuch fears were admittedly premature, with Liverpool since bolstered by the returns of the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Jordan Henderson and Joel Matip from injury.But even with their walking wounded back amongst the ranks, Reds fans still fretted about their rank in the pecking order with the summer transfer window doing nothing to ease such fears.While Liverpool spending was limited to just the £36m arrival of Ibrahima Konate from RB Leipzig, Man City spent a Premier League record £100m to bring in Jack Grealish while Chelsea parted with a club-record £97.5m to re-sign Romelu Lukaku to emphasise exactly what the Reds were up against as they headed into the new campaign, seemingly already a step behind.If the early weeks of the season are anything to go by, they neednt have worried.Klopps men have got their mojo back and head into the latest round of fixtures level at the top of the table with Chelsa, conceding just once and having won all but one of their matches, with only alphabetical order keeping them off top spot.First place could have even been theirs outright had they found a way past the 10-man Blues last month.After Liverpool were held to a 1-1 draw by Tuchels side, Man City are the next title-contenders to try their hand against the European champions.And while the last time the two sides met, it was a lose-lose situation for the Reds, this time it is very much a scenario they look sure to benefit from.Must-read Liverpool FC newsChelsea host Man City in the Saturday lunchtime kick-off, with Klopps men then travelling to Brentford that evening knowing that could be presented with the opportunity to lay down an early marker in the title-race and make top spot their own.Sure, if Chelsea win, a victory over the newly-promoted Bees wouldnt necessarily be enough to leapfrog Tuchels side, but it would leave us in a title-race where the reigning champions would have drawn once and lost twice from their opening six games.Admittedly City enduring a slow start the new season is not a new phenomenon, with them losing to Leicester City and drawing with Leeds United and West Ham United in their opening six matches last season, having been held by Tottenham Hotspur and lost to Norwich City the year before.But its all very well fighting back to win the title in a year where everyone is dropping points and top spot is changing on a weekly basis, as often was the case in the first half of the Premier League season last year. Its a different situation entirely if a gap is already starting to build behind an unbeaten side at the top, as they found out to their cost during Liverpools own title-winning year in 2019/20.Never mind two of them.Of course its too early to be writing Man City out of any title-race, but a loss at Stamford Bridge would leave them six points behind Chelsea with only six games played, while the deficit behind the Reds would be the same should they beat Brentford.However, if the sides draw at Stamford Bridge, Liverpool would be presented with an early opportunity to make top spot their own and build a two-point lead at the top of the table and a five-point advantage over Man City in the process.Sign up for daily Liverpool newsGet all the latest Liverpool breaking news, team news, transfer rumours, injury updates plus analysis of what's next for the Reds.You'll also get the latest transfer talk and analysis every day for FREE! Sign up here - it only takes a few seconds!Meanwhile, if Guardiolas men win, the Reds could finish Saturday three points ahead of two of their closest title-challengers.Its still far too early in the season to be writing any team off with the destination of the Premier League trophy decided in the Spring, not September.But with this years title race already tipped to be the tightest one yet, with Manchester United making it four sides who could realistically claim the crown, every dropped point counts even in these formative weeks of the season.And with City the next visitors to Anfield in Liverpools final match before the October international break, Klopps men are preparing for a week which could easily end with them very much being the side to beat.Read MoreRelated ArticlesRead MoreRelated Articles