Manchester City underlined their Premier League title credentials with a dramatic win over Liverpool.
Manchester City have, once again, closed the gap on Arsenal in the race for the Premier League title following a dramatic 2-1 win over Liverpool.
City went into that game wanting to reply to Arsenal’s 3-0 win over Sunderland on Saturday afternoon. But they had champions Liverpool and Anfield standing in their way.
After a pretty uneventful first half, the game burst into life upon the restart. City found themselves a goal down after Dominik Szoboszlai’s strike in the 74th minute.
But they turned it all around in the final six minutes plus stoppage-time with Bernardo Silva finding the net, and Erling Haaland making no mistake from the spot. There was, however, time for more drama.
City thought that they had made it 3-1 with a late goal, only for VAR to rule out that goal. It was determined that Haaland had fouled Szoboszlai as the ball was making its way into the net.
The Liverpool man was, however, shown a straight red for a pull on Haaland when he was through on goal.
The win for City moves them to within six points of Arsenal. It means that the next few weeks could be crucial in the title race. Here’s a look at what awaits for the current top-three;
Arsenal (1st place, 56 points)
vs Brentford (A) – Thursday, February 12 (8pm)
vs Wigan (H) – Sunday, February 15 (4.30pm) – FA Cup
vs Wolves (A) – Wednesday, February 18 (8pm)
vs Tottenham (A) – Sunday, February 22 (4.30pm)
vs Chelsea (H) – Sunday, March 1 (4.30pm)
The verdict: The standout fixture here is the North London Derby against Tottenham at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. It’s followed by another difficult clash against a resurgent Chelsea at the Emirates Stadium.
Man City (2nd place, 50 points)
vs Fulham (A) – Wednesday, February 11 (7.30pm)
vs Salford City (H) – Saturday, February 14 (3pm) – FA Cup
vs Newcastle (H) – Saturday, February 21 (8pm)
vs Leeds (A) – Saturday, February 28 (5.30pm)
vs Nottingham Forest (H) – Wednesday, March 4 (7.30pm)
The verdict: On paper, at least, City probably have the easiest of runs, with games against teams in the bottom half of the table.
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Aston Villa (3rd place, 47 points)
vs Brighton (H) – Wednesday, February 11 (7.30pm)
vs Newcastle (H) – Saturday, February 14 (5.45pm) – FA Cup
vs Leeds (H) – Saturday, February 21 (7.30pm)
vs Wolves (A) – Friday, February 27 (8pm)
vs Chelsea (H) – Wednesday, March 4 (7.30pm)
The verdict: Villa’s home form could be key over the next few weeks, with four of the five coming at Villa Park. They will have to make the most of that if they’re to close the gap.
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