Liverpool make title-race statement with comprehensive beating of Man City

Liverpool are on a quest to finally win the Premier League and Sunday’s convincing 3-1 win over Manchester City was a statement of intent.

Everything was on the line at Anfield in Matchday 12.

Last season’s Premier League title race between Liverpool and Manchester City was one for the ages, coming down to just one point between two sides putting up record points totals.

This season’s first meeting of England’s two dominant sides – with Liverpool already six points clear of City – felt destined to be a statement match.

The Reds knew that they would likely have to beat the defending champions at least once head-to-head this season if they wanted to win the league title. And they did exactly that. Liverpool, in fact, annihilated City at Anfield.

They jumped to a 2-0 lead within the first 15 minutes, showing their wonderful attacking prowess. The Reds often need just a few passes to conjure up a magical goal, and City were left stunned by a long-range strike from Fabinho and a Mo Salah header that capped a wonderful move.

In the second half, Ballon d’Or candidate Sadio Mane scored a diving – jab at Pep Guardiola fully intended – header to put Liverpool up 3-0 and all but ice the game. Defensively, Liverpool were impeccable again. Though City managed to find a late goal from Bernardo Silva to make it 3-1, their prolific attack was outclassed by the Reds’ back four.

Liverpool had made their statement.

“It’s a big win against our closet rivals from last season, they beat us to the league,” Liverpool’s Andy Robertson told Sky Sports afterward. “To play this game at home and get a result is massive for us.”

It felt so massive because, although Liverpool came into this highly-anticipated fixture with that six-point lead in the table, there were still questions about how they compared to Guardiola’s two-time defending champions. The Reds have been able to win several close games on late goals, leaving them with a goal differential that was a whopping eight goals fewer than City’s despite the gap in points.

So while Liverpool had the edge on City in the standings and had the home-field advantage, Jurgen Klopp was the one with a point to prove against Guardiola. By scoring three goals in a convincing victory, Liverpool undoubtedly showed the world that they can take down their biggest rivals to the Premier League title.

After being foiled by slips and unlikely Vincent Kompany wonderstrikes in title races of the past, Liverpool fans might have thought any luck to start the 2019-20 campaign was just a matter of the universe restoring some sort of balance.

Except the Reds haven’t been lucky and are indeed the best team in England. This result at Anfield unequivocally showed it. Liverpool are on a different level as a cohesive unit than any other team in Europe. The understanding among the attackers, the industry of the midfield, and the solidarity of the defense in front of Alisson make the Reds an enviously well-rounded team.

There is still plenty of football left in the 2019-20 Premier League season, but Liverpool have clearly established themselves as the favorites to win the title. They have made their own luck, and they are Europe’s top club right now.

The pressure is officially on City to bridge the gap.