Pat Nevin believes that Premier League teams have lost the fear of Liverpool that they had developed last season.
The former Chelsea and Everton midfielder joined on the line as always on a Monday and he started by analysing the Merseyside derby draw between Liverpool and Everton.
"I think teams realize that have they got the punch or are they anywhere near the team they were last year. Well 'no' is the answer to that," said Pat tonight.
Steven Gerrard is also being man-marked in his role in front of the Liverpool defence and Pat feels it makes sense for opposition teams to target the captain.
"He's been man-marked not just because he's influential, but because if you close him down and get the ball off him, he probably won't catch some of the quick players anymore," he said.
He also looked at the issues at Everton, especially the ageing partnership of Phil Jagielka and Sylvain Distin at the back.
Pat also gave his take on Arsenal's draw at home to local rivals Tottenham and assessed Manchester City's vulnerability at the back.
Meanwhile, North East football writer Colin Young also joined us on the Football Show as Newcastle United's 1 - 0 defeat at Stoke failed to give Alan Pardew any assurances over his future.
Listen to both interviews via the Off The Ball Football Show podcast.
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