Slot admits Liverpool's season has been 'constant battle'

Defending champions Liverpool are fourth in the table at the half-way stage, 12 points behind the Gunners and eight behind City following a 0-0 draw with Leeds on Thursday.

Third-placed Aston Villa are six points clear of the Reds.

Slot's team have recovered ground after a terrible run of nine defeats in 12 matches in all competitions starting in late September but they remain well of the pace.

"Realistically those two teams (Arsenal and City) are quite far away from us and we should not look at those two at this moment in time," said the Liverpool boss.

"We have had our struggles throughout. Now we have been seven (league) games in a row unbeaten but if you say this you feel like, 'They are flying through the league', but that is not what we are doing.

"Every single game we play it's hard work. We are mainly the team that is probably better than the other team but not enough."

Slot said he and his men would keep working to "find a moment where we can fly through the season".

"But for the first 19 games it has been a constant battle, close to each other, sometimes a bit lucky, sometimes a bit unlucky," he admitted.

Slot, who won the Premier League in his first campaign at Anfield, believes fourth place is a fair reflection of Liverpool's season so far.

"Although the margins are small so that could have influenced us having three, four, five, six more points maybe," he said ahead of Sunday's trip to Fulham.

"But from open play, from where we are, when I look at Arsenal, I look at City and I look at us, it's fair that we are not above them.

"That we are so many points behind them, there are reasons for that but it wouldn't be fair if we were above them for the way we have played."

Liverpool, currently missing the injured Alexander Isak and Mohamed Salah, who is on Africa Cup of Nations duty with Egypt, struggled to impose themselves against Leeds at Anfield despite dominating possession.

"I think it is clear and obvious that we hardly concede chances any more," said Slot.

But he added: "It is also clear and obvious that we find it quite hard to generate enough chances for all the ball possession we have and that is not new for us this season."