Man.City bid to close gap as Liverpool look to extend lead

Liverpool will look to extend their lead when they take on Manchester City in the top-of-the-table clash on Sunday. Reds have a cushion of a six-point lead over their nearest rivals City in the league. They have a chance to prove that their stellar campaign is not a flash in the pan and are indeed contenders for the prestigious title, 29 years since lifting it last.

A resurgent City under Pep Guardiola have kept Liverpool waiting last season when the latter were denied the title by City despite posting the third highest tally of 97 points in the history of the Premier League.

However, City edged out their rivals by a thin margin to claim the title with 100 points, bettering their best of 98 in the previous season. This season, both the Premier League giants are coming face-to-face on Sunday for the first time with a lot at stakes for both the teams.

Beset by defensive injuries, those standards have slipped slightly at the start of this season, allowing Jurgen Klopp’s men to open up a six-point lead ahead of Sunday’s battle between the top two.

“Last season we won the Premier League (against) the best contender I ever faced in my career,” said Guardiola on Friday.

“Right now Liverpool are the strongest team in the world. Playing at Anfield, we know what it means for them and for all their rivals.”

Revitalised since Klopp took charge four years ago, Liverpool have not lost a home game in the Premier League since April 2017.

Their solitary defeat in the last 50 league games on any ground came away to City in January in a titanic tussle that ultimately decided the title race. The consistency of both sides has seen this fixture become English football’s biggest game in recent seasons.

In 2017/18 it was Liverpool who ended City’s quest for an unbeaten league season and thrashed Guardiola’s men 5-1 on aggregate in an ill-tempered Champions League quarter-final.

“It’s getting bigger and bigger,” said Klopp.

“Man City is a pretty good football team. Thank God there is a rivalry because that means we are not in bad place as well.”

While City have suffered shock defeats to Norwich and Wolves in the first 11 games of the season, Liverpool have had the air of champions in recent weeks with their ability to fight to the end for their rewards.

Late goals against Leicester, Tottenham, Manchester United and Aston Villa have earned Klopp’s men an extra eight points in the past month alone.

Now they have the perfect opportunity to press home their advantage against a City side further weakened at the back by an injury to goalkeeper Ederson.

The erratic Claudio Bravo, who was sent-off for a characteristic charge from his goal against Atalanta in the Champions League in midweek, will start a Premier League game for the first time since May 2018.

A longer term injury to Aymeric Laporte has already destabilised City’s title defence with midfielder Fernandinho forced to deputise at centre-back, while left-back Benjamin Mendy is still to find his best form after two injury plagued seasons.

“It’s a big game, two really good teams face each other. The best news is it’s at Anfield,” added Klopp.

Guardiola insisted all will not be lost in the case of his fourth defeat in five visits to Anfield as City boss, but knows how much of a mountain it would leave his side to climb.

“It will be more difficult when you see a team like Liverpool, who lost once last season and is unbeaten this season.

Meanwhile, Liverpool do not want to experience a repeat of last season when they narrowly lost the Premier League title race to Manchester City and will look to take all three points when the champions visit on Sunday, goalkeeper Alisson Becker has said.

“Last season we had a great experience, an almost perfect season,” Alisson said in an interview. “We lost one game and that one game was against City. We know how big this game is for us... for everyone.

“In the end it is just three more important points but Manchester City have been the best team in the league for the last few years so we need to give everything to win this game.

“We don’t want to feel how we felt last season. Being second by just one point... we had the loss away to Man City when we could have won or drawn. We need to give everything in every game if we want to become Premier League champions.”

Agencies