Manchester City and Liverpool would be level on points in the Premier League if goals in the final 15 minutes of each half were discounted.
Gordon Taylor, chairman of the PFA, has suggested that the remainder of the season could be played in 30-minute halves to reduce the impact a condensed schedule would have on players.
In response, EFL chairman Rick Parry said there had not been discussions over the proposal, but did say the idea should not be ruled out. The Premier League have said the idea is "not on the table".
But let's say for a moment this idea was introduced.
A quick look at City's goals this season show that Pep Guardiola's side have scored the most goals between the 76th and 90th minutes (including injury time) with 16. Liverpool are the closest team with 14 goals.
At the end of the first half (31-45 minutes), it is Liverpool who have the most goals with 17. Clearly, both sides have built their success on scoring goals at times when there is little time for the opposition to respond.
When this is translated into points won and lost thanks to goals in the final 15 minutes of each half, City have gained 11 points through these strikes, but have lost six points through late goals, equalling a net gain of five points.
For Liverpool, they have gained an incredible 30 points from goals scored at the end of each half, showing their ruthlessness in breaking down stubborn defences.
So when those points are taken off both sides' tally so far, it places City and Liverpool level on 52 points, cancelling out the current 25-point gap Liverpool hold.
Clearly, this is all hypothetical, but it shows how playing the final nine or ten games under different conditions to the previous 28 or 29 is so problematic.
