Liverpool will continue their one-game-a-week schedule between now and the end of the season, but this week brings the chance to clinch the title at Anfield.
Unlike the rest of the campaign, Liverpool are enjoying a light schedule as they close in on their second Premier League title.
Out of the Champions League and the FA Cup, the Reds are playing once every Sunday, which has allowed Arne Slot and his staff to tweak their training programme and ensure more time off.
This week that means Slot and his players will take Monday and Tuesday off before reporting back to the AXA Training Centre for meetings and training sessions from Wednesday.
Slot himself has returned to the Netherlands to rejoin his family, while the remainder of the squad may also decide to head abroad to recharge ahead of a crucial clash at the weekend.
Knowing they can secure the Premier League title with a win over Tottenham on Sunday – or if Arsenal lose to Crystal Palace on Wednesday night – there could be a different mood around the buildup.
That comes with the squad planning to watch Arsenal’s midweek kickoff together, in scenes similar to 2020.
But the focus first will be on enjoying their mini-break after spending much of the Easter weekend together around the 1-0 win over Leicester.
“The boys also have one or two days off during this week, because we’ve planned that already a long time ago,” Slot told reporters at the King Power.
“Hopefully they will enjoy some time with their loved ones and be fully focused when we’re back together to work towards Tottenham.”
It is not uncommon for Slot to grant his players time off after games, with it certainly a change from the intense training schedule observed under Jurgen Klopp, and it seems to be paying off.
Earlier this month, Luis Diaz and his wife made a brief trip to Paris before the Colombian returned to score the opener in the 2-1 win over West Ham.
There have been other changes, too, including players and staff sleeping at home on the night before games wherever possible, having stayed in a designated team hotel under the previous regime.
While there is sense of morale-boosting man-management around these changes, allowing players time to detach from the rigours of the modern football schedule, every decision will be made with the science in mind too.
Liverpool will be eager to go all out against Tottenham whether or not the title is already secured by the time they kick off, with the chance of celebrating the title in front of their fans not lost on the players.
