Man City’s comeback thriller keeps title hopes alive; Liverpool slip further

LIVERPOOL, England — Erling Haaland kept Manchester City alive in the Premier League title race on Sunday with a penalty game-winner in a chaotic finish against Liverpool at Anfield.

Dominik Szoboszlai‘s stunning free-kick 74th minute free-kick looked set to send Liverpool to victory and boost the reigning champions’ hopes of a top four finish. But Haaland then turned the game in City’s favour by creating Bernardo Silva‘s equaliser before winning the game from the penalty spot in stoppage time.

Man City thought they had scored a third goal in the final seconds when Rayan Cherki landed a shot in an empty net from inside his own half. But the goal was ruled out following a VAR intervention that led to Szoboszlai being sent off for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity when Haaland chased down the ball in pursuit of a second goal.

With the result, Man City have reduced their gap at the top to six points behind leaders Arsenal while Liverpool remain outside of Champions League position. — Mark Ogden

---

Nope, Man City can’t be counted out of title race

Manchester City’s title hopes looked to be dead-and-buried when Szoboszlai scored his incredible free-kick opener — a goal which would have left Pep Guardiola’s side nine points behind Arsenal if Liverpool held on for victory.

But, despite not playing well at Anfield, City rallied in the closing stages to seal a huge win with goals from Silva and Haaland.

The three points will be welcomed by City, but perhaps the most important aspect of the result was the manner of the win and the lift it will give Guardiola’s players — and also the impact it will have on Arsenal.

The Gunners still have to visit the Etihad before the end of the season, so as long as they fail to shake City off, they will be haunted of memories of two previous campaigns when they allowed Guardiola’s men to overhaul them in the final stretch of the season.

This isn’t a vintage City team, but when they have the goal threat of Haaland and mercurial players of the quality of Silva, they will always be a title contender. Their title-winning pedigree may yet prove to a crucial ingredient as they attempt to chase Arsenal down.

Winning at Anfield is always a major result for any team and this will count heavily for City. They showed they can against a big rival when not playing well. It is the kind of stuff that will give Arsenal nightmares. — Ogden

---

Liverpool let Champions League hopes slip further

The full-time scenes at Anfield spoke volumes. As Liverpool fans trudged for the exits, the Manchester City supporters celebrated wildly in the away end. For many in attendance, it will have been the first time they have ever witnessed Guardiola’s side win at Liverpool’s famous home, with City’s last Anfield victory having come in 2003.

For Liverpool manager Arne Slot, it is another unwanted blot on his copybook in a season which continues to plummet to new depths for the Premier League champions. At 1-0 up, Liverpool looked like the team that romped to the title last term — but as soon as Silva equalised in the 84th minute, it was as if the home crowd could sense what was coming.

Haaland’s 93rd minute penalty is the sixth goal the Reds have conceded after the 90th minute in the top flight this season, with all those goals coming in one-goal defeats or draws. Having profited from late wins in the early weeks of the campaign, Liverpool are now the masters of crumbling in the dying seconds of games.

With a five-point deficit to make up on fourth-placed Manchester United, it is a habit they need to kick very quickly – – or else Champions League qualification will soon be out of their reach. — Beth Lindop

---

Even on a bad day, Haaland can be a game-changer

Haaland showed just why he is the most dangerous forward in football by sealing City’s win after a largely anonymous afternoon at Anfield.

The City forward had gone into the game having scored just once in his previous seven league games and he looked both disinterested and out of form for most of the game.

But the reason why Haaland is so important for City is that he is always capable of deciding a big game. Haaland had done nothing until the 84th minute, when he headed the ball into Silva’s path for the midfielder to cancel out Liverpool’s stunning free-kick opener.

Seven minutes later, Haaland stepped up to score from the penalty spot after goalkeeper Alisson had fouled Nico O’Reilly. It was a big pressure penalty in a game that had huge implications for the title race, but Haaland showed nerves of steel to score the goal — his first in the league at Afield — and win the game. — Ogden

---

Declines of Salah and Allisson exemplify Liverpool transition

When it comes to players who have formed the bedrock of Liverpool’s success over the past decade, Mohamed Salah and Alisson Becker are pretty much peerless.

The duo’s brilliance at both ends of the pitch has inspired the Reds to many a victory over Manchester City in recent years but, on Sunday afternoon, evidence of their diminishing powers was plain to see.

Salah’s record against City is extraordinary. Before Sunday, the Egypt international had either scored or assisted 15 of Liverpool’s previous 20 Premier League goals against Guardiola’s men.

While he was unlucky not to claim an assist for Hugo Ekitike in the second half, it is impossible to argue with the fact that his star is now on the wane. The same can be said for Alisson, who needlessly brought down Matheus Nunes inside the box to hand City the chance to win it late on.

Of course, both players still have a role to play for Liverpool this season and maybe even next. But, at present, they are a reminder of the fact that Slot’s side are still a team in transition, with the superstars of the Jurgen Klopp era now beginning to lose their shine. — Lindop

---

Szoboszlai red card makes Liverpool loss extra costly

There is a certain irony to the fact that Szoboszlai — Liverpool’s player of the season and their goalscorer against Manchester City — was dismissed before the final whistle after pulling back Haaland. Szoboszlai has so often been Liverpool’s hero this season, but it seems even he is not immune from the madness that continues to plague the Reds’ topsy-turvy campaign.

Szoboszlai thought he had won it for the hosts when he curled a sublime free-kick past Gianluigi Donnarumma 16 minutes from time. It was a brilliant goal that capped an all-action display from the Hungary international. He has now scored four direct free-kicks in all competitions this season, the most in a single campaign by a Liverpool player since Luis Suárez scored five in 2012-13.

Tasked with playing at right-back against City, Szoboszlai sought to drive the hosts forward in the second half, once again reinforcing the notion that he has all the ingredients to become a future Liverpool captain. However, with Alisson out of his goal in stoppage time, a rush of blood to the head saw Szoboszlai yank at Haaland’s shirt and, following a VAR review, receive his marching orders.

It means he will now be unavailable for Liverpool’s tricky midweek trip to Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. When it rains for Slot and Liverpool this season, it pours. — Lindop

---

Guehi shows Liverpool what they are missing

Marc Guéhi should be a Liverpool player now, but Crystal Palace‘s decision to pull the plug on his move to Anfield on deadline day last September cost him his move to the champions, denying Liverpool a much-needed centre-half.

Liverpool have never really recovered from their failure to bolster their defensive options and they continue to lack competition at the back.

Despite missing out on Guehi in the summer, Liverpool didn’t go back in for the England defender in January because City had already moved ahead of them in the chase for the Palace captain.

By completing a £20 million deal for Guehi, City completed a bargain transfer deal and kept him out of the clutches of one of their big rivals. And although he was booed by the home crowd whenever he touched the ball, Guehi had an impressive 90 minutes and showed Liverpool what they missed out on.

He did pick up a yellow card for a shirt tug on Salah, but otherwise, Guehi was rock solid. One can only wonder what might’ve gone differently had Guehi been playing for Liverpool on Sunday instead. — Ogden