1 hour ago
27
By the time Liverpool played Manchester City last season, it was already looking like a Premier League champion. A 2-0 victory at the Etihad Stadium, courtesy of goals from Mohamed Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai, only underlined that.
A few months on, Arne Slot is heading into the same fixture with a rather more urgent need for points. If the last visit was a statement performance, any kind of victory would be welcome here.
By the time Liverpool kicks off against Pep Guardiola's men, both teams knew that the likeliest outcome was they would be 10 and nine points behind the Gunners respectively. Letting that gap widen is simply not an option, and after Arsenal dropped points against Sunderland, an even bigger opportunity has opened up.
There is added intrigue this time around in other ways too. Pep Lijnders is now in the opposing dugout; there is still no Rodri; and Erling Haaland is in much better form than at any point in the last campaign.
The Norwegian finished behind two Liverpool players in the race for the Premier League Golden Boot last time around — Salah and Alexander Isak — but there will be no repeat of that in 2026.
In last season's fixture, Slot went with Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones as a front two, with Salah and Luis Diaz wide, and Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch in the middle.
Whether he goes with Cody Gakpo or Florian Wirtz off the left after the German playmaker impressed against Real Madrid midweek, the template for more success is there.
Though Manchester City is one point ahead of Liverpool as things stand, its primary threat is Haaland. And after dominating Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Jr on Tuesday, Virgil van Dijk and co will be confident of a repeat.
The key to stopping Haaland is not to attempt to match him, just as Van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate didn't really go head-to-head with Mbappe, but to prevent the ball from getting to him.
The trick there lies in the center of the pitch, where a similar set-up to last season is a must. Mac Allister and Gravenberch will be there, and Szoboszlai is in even better form now than he was then.
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Wirtz can do a similarly diligent job to Diaz on the left, while Salah has returned to form in the last couple of matches and will hope to continue that from the right.
Given his ability to press and to keep possession, there is a case for starting Jones again. Hugo Ekitike, though, is also capable of doing plenty off the ball. If he gets the nod again, there would be no concern.
In what will be Pep Guardiola's 1000th match as a manager, he will be desperate to come out on top. If Liverpool plays as well as it is capable, however, it already has the template for delivering a statement result.
Wirtz was unleashed midweek against Real Madrid. Doing the same thing again, and producing a similar blueprint to the one that beat Manchester City last time, could see a repeat of the result.
English (US) ·