Manchester City v Liverpool: How key is Etihad match to Premier League title hopes?

Pep Guardiola, the manager of Manchester City, labeled facing Liverpool in his 1,000th match as a manager as «the fate of the universe» due to their collective control over English football recently.

In the last eight Premier League seasons, the title has been a contest between these two giants, with City seizing the championship six times during that span, including a remarkable four victories in succession.

City will clash with Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday (16:30 GMT), where the outcome may significantly influence their Premier League fate this season.

In an unexpected turn, these long-standing benchmarks in the Premier League now find themselves in a group of pursuers.

Arsenal has been watching closely, as City and Liverpool have overshadowed them in recent times, but for the moment, the Gunners are more of the prey than the predators.

Had they not allowed two late points to slip against Sunderland on Saturday night due to Brian Brobbey’s equalizer deep in stoppage time, Mikel Arteta’s top-ranked team might have found themselves nine points ahead of Guardiola’s squad and ten clear of Liverpool.

Given that title races in the past few seasons have been extremely close, a victory for Arsenal could have left their opponents on Sunday to ponder that the title chase was beginning to slip away from them, even after just 11 matches.

Now, a window of opportunity has opened.

Arsenal’s lead was becoming quite pronounced until the very last minute at Sunderland, as any lead exceeding 10 points in the Premier League has only been surrendered three times.

Dismissing teams of the caliber of Manchester City and Liverpool would be premature, especially since both are beginning to show signs of returning to peak form after some setbacks earlier in the season.

Now, Arsenal’s late slip at the Stadium of Light has only heightened the stakes ahead of this upcoming encounter between City and Liverpool.

Guardiola faces a formidable opponent in Liverpool, one he has struggled to overcome—first under Jurgen Klopp and now under Arne Slot, whose champions managed to outperform him last season.

Guardiola has overseen 18 Premier League matches versus Liverpool, registering only five victories, alongside seven draws and six defeats. In total competitions, he has played 24 times, achieving six wins, eight draws, and ten losses.

The former manager of Barcelona and Bayern Munich is well aware of the implications of this latest showdown, especially with Arsenal’s impressive performance adding to the expectations.

Reflecting on the pursuit City faces, Guardiola remarked: «You always hope that you can improve and that they will drop points. All we can do is secure our victories and close the gap.»

Guardiola recognized that Arsenal was in the process of forming a team capable of contending for the championship. He is curious to see if they can sustain their impressive beginning.

«In the past two or three years, following the club’s and team’s reconstruction, Arsenal has emerged strong. Their performance over the last two or three seasons is remarkable,» Guardiola stated.

«However, it’s still early November. No one secures the title in early November. It’s possible to lose it, but no one manages to win it at this stage.»

«I understand how swiftly circumstances can shift. Just a week ago, people were calling Liverpool a ‘disaster’ and now they’ve won two matches, sparking the question: ‘Are they back to peak form?’

«I believe managers have a broader perspective on the overall scenario.

«Throughout a season, there are always ups and downs.»

Liverpool’s head coach Slot shares the belief that the title race will have its fluctuations, but the importance of this match cannot be overlooked or undervalued.

Slot mentioned: «Currently, it’s not about focusing on the league standings. It’s about winning as many matches as possible to put yourself in the best possible position.

«But no doubt, two strong teams will be going head-to-head, and we will see what the future holds.

«Our main concern is to focus on ourselves. We need to achieve consistent improvement, ensure players are fit, and see where that takes us.

«Playing against City is a challenge by itself. Competing on the road against them is among the toughest tasks we face all season. These matches are anticipated by everyone.»

Slot’s return to his championship-winning midfield trio of Ryan Gravenberch, Alex Mac Allister, and Dominik Szoboszlai has restored a familiar and victorious look to Liverpool in their previous two matches against Aston Villa and Real Madrid, with Szoboszlai from Hungary playing a pivotal role.

«Dominik has consistently performed exceptionally well this season,» said Slot, «but the last two matches have elicited even greater contributions from him and the team. I really appreciate his off-the-ball work, but in these games, he likely surpassed even his own high standards.»

If Liverpool can seize control in midfield at the Etihad Stadium, they will believe they can thrive – yet an improving Manchester City will equally hold confidence.

The arena is set for the next monumental clash.

Erling Haaland netted his 27th goal for club and country in City’s 4-1 victory over his former team Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Wednesday.

It has been a phenomenal streak of performance, even by the standards of one of the most lethal strikers in global football.

The unstoppable force squares off against the unyielding object when Haaland encounters Virgil van Dijk on Sunday. This personal rivalry will significantly influence the distribution of points.

The Norwegian will be eager to finally change his subpar history against Liverpool’s Dutch captain.

Since his arrival at City in July 2022, Haaland has faced Van Dijk in five matches and has not yet tasted victory, recording three losses and two draws. His only triumph over Liverpool came in the League Cup’s fourth round in December 2022, when he scored during a 3-2 win, but Van Dijk did not participate in that match.

Stephen Warnock, a former Liverpool and England defender, shared with BBC Sport: «If you analyze crucial areas that will determine the match’s outcome from Liverpool’s perspective, it’s vital to neutralize Haaland, and that largely hinges on midfield play, particularly in obstructing passes directed towards him.

«It will depend on whether Liverpool’s midfield can press City as effectively as they did against Aston Villa and Real Madrid.»

Warnock added: «Much of any face-off between Van Dijk and Haaland will rely on the support Haaland receives, and it ultimately comes down to Van Dijk and [Ibrahima] Konate’s mission to contain him. The onus will be on Haaland to choose his primary opponent. If he goes up against Konate, Van Dijk will have no recourse, and the other way around as well.

«The crucial task for Liverpool is to halt the passes at the source and curb balls directed toward him. It will be up to Liverpool’s midfielders to obstruct City’s creative players from surveying the game, like Phil Foden and Rayan Cherki did against Bournemouth last weekend, and executing those passes.»

Chris Sutton, a former England striker, believes that personal pride will also ignite the contest between Haaland and Van Dijk.

«This will be riveting,» states Sutton. «Van Dijk will possess a sense of pride that drives him to triumph over Haaland, particularly since Liverpool’s defense has faced significant backlash.

«Naturally, Liverpool can keep Haaland subdued as they just did against a Real Madrid attack featuring Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior – but I would choose Haaland over any of their attackers right now, making this a supreme challenge for Van Dijk.»