Liverpool and Manchester City have gone head-to-head for Premier League titles in recent years but that doesn't appear to be the case this time around.

City currently sit 13 points above the Reds after just 12 matches played. It doesn't look as though there will be a ding-dong title battle between the two clubs this campaign.

Liverpool simply can't compete with Man City.

That's the opinion of Jurgen Klopp who suggested his club can't match City's financial muscle in the transfer window.

Earlier this month - before Liverpool went on to beat Man City 1-0 at Anfield - Klopp insisted that the Merseysiders aren't able to keep up with Man City's spending.

Klopp: Liverpool 'can't compete' with Man City

"Nobody can compete with City," Klopp said. "You have the best team in the world and you put in the best striker on the market. No matter what it costs, you just do it.

"City won't like it, nobody will like it, but you know the answer. What does Liverpool do? We cannot act like them. It's not possible, not possible.

"It's just clear: there are three clubs in world football who can do what they want financially. It's legal, everything is fine, but they can do whatever they want. Competing with them? It's not possible to deal with that.

"I heard the Newcastle [sporting director Dan Ashworth] say there's no ceiling for this club - he's absolutely right. There's no ceiling for Newcastle. Congratulations - some clubs have ceilings."

Is Klopp right about being unable to compete with Man City?

So, is Klopp right? Are Liverpool unable to compete with Man City in the transfer market?

Well, who better to turn to than the brilliant Swiss Ramble on Twitter?

Swiss Ramble has become renowned for producing incredibly detailed and thought-provoking threads on the finances in football. And he's done so once again as he compares the spending of Man City and Liverpool.

He begins: "Some Liverpool fans are understandably unhappy with their team’s performances this season, identifying a lack of investment as one of the factors, particularly compared to Manchester City. This short thread will look at whether this is indeed the case."

https://twitter.com/SwissRamble/status/1586982870106652672

The thread that follows looks at the total money spent in recent years and disputes the fact that Liverpool 'can't compete' with Man City when it comes to finances.

Check out the full thread below:

The thread concludes with the following statement: "As always, when comparing finances of football clubs it is best to look at more than one metric, then consider the impact over different time periods. This thread has shown that people can use a single statistic to “prove their point”, but the full story is often more nuanced."

Reaction to the thread

So, it's clear the conclusion is that Liverpool can - and have - been competing with Man City in the transfer market in recent years. And that's what many fans have taken away from the above analysis.

Check out some of the reaction:

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