Liverpool 1-2 Man City 

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Erling Haaland and Pep Guardiola were minutes away from bidding farewell to the Premier League title for a second consecutive season, a feeling the latter certainly isn’t familiar with. Then, all hell broke loose at Anfield. Manchester City were second-best for much of the second half against Liverpool and trailed to a wonderful Dominik Szoboszlai free-kick that crashed in off the post. But this City team never rests until the final whistle and, with a number of winners in the squad – Bernardo Silva, Rodri and Ruben Dias to name a few – even a 1-0 lead at Anfield never looked secure as they ran out 2-1 winners.

Haaland and Ekitiké’s differing fortunes

It didn’t always look likely for City or Haaland. When Bernardo Silva slid in the Norwegian in the first moments of the game, most would’ve expected an in-form Haaland to finish with aplomb. But this version of the City star, low on confidence, produced a feeble effort that Alisson was able to smother. From that moment on, Haaland’s head dropped and his only other chance was a half-volley from a difficult angle, which again the Brazilian stopper was equal to. He seemed to be missing Cherki’s creative talents in the No. 10 position, feeding off scraps in a lonely role up front.

Inevitable comparisons can be made with Hugo Ekitiké, Liverpool’s shiny €95 million summer signing who has already hit double figures in the Premier League in his debut season. The Frenchman has embarked on an impressive run of form, scoring nine goals and registering three assists in his previous 12 games heading into this one. Comparatively, Haaland had scored just twice and provided one assist. Ekitiké had played slightly fewer minutes (909) across that period, giving him a very healthy return of 0.89 goals per 90 minutes.

The problem with scoring at the rate that Haaland does is that the bar he single-handedly raised is difficult to keep reaching at a consistent rate. The expectation is that the 25-year-old will find the net every time he makes his way onto the pitch, but no striker in the history of football is capable of that. The mental block of going three, four or even five games without a goal can be a heavy burden, even on a player with Haaland’s self-assurance.

Chaos descends at Anfield

Still, even if he’s not scoring, he can turn provider. It was Haaland’s header that found Silva alone and the Portuguese prodded home the equaliser on 84 minutes out of nowhere. Then City won a penalty in stoppage time after Matheus Nunes was felled by Alisson inside the penalty area. Up stepped Haaland and usually, there would only be one outcome. Still, there was an air of uncertainty after his poor run of form that saw him find the net just twice in his previous 12 games in all competitions. He had squandered two chances already, would it be a case of third-time lucky?

There was no fortune about the strike, that’s for sure, as it nestled into the bottom corner. For all of their recent form, he was on the scoresheet and a quiet Ekitiké wasn’t. Haaland probably should’ve had a second in the 10th minute of seven stoppage time, but he was tugged back by Szoboszlai while Alisson was stranded further upfield. Rayan Cherki’s effort rolled into the net, but referee Craig Pawson – with an unnecessary intervention from VAR – chose to disallow the goal and show a red card to the Liverpool man. In 20 minutes of mayhem, City had scored twice and had a third ruled out, while Liverpool face losing one of their best players this season.

What it means for the title race

Football can never be accused of being predictable, not in the Premier League. City had only won once in their last 10 visits to Anfield, but they got the job done when they needed to – even with the clock against them. What it means for City is that they are six points adrift of leaders Arsenal following their 3-0 win over Sunderland and not nine.

With the Gunners still to visit the Etihad later this season, that three-point swing could be crucial in deciding whether City and Guardiola are holding the Premier League trophy for a seventh time together, or if his protégé Mikel Arteta does instead.