Trent Alexander-Arnold’s second-half equalizer kept Liverpool level with leaders Manchester City, raising the possibility that the race for the Premier League title is officially on the cards.
Erling Haaland scored his 50th Premier League goal in just 48 games, putting City ahead in the 27th minute and reaching the goal 17 games earlier than any other player.
Liverpool, with Luis Diaz’s rescued father watching from the stands, leveled the score with an equally impressive finish from Trent Alexander-Arnold and briefly maintained their lead at the top.
The match ended with an altercation between Darwin Nunez and Josep Guardiola, a rare flashpoint in a calm game.
Here, Michael Cox, Oliver Kaye, Greg Evans and Jay Harris analyze the match.
Manchester City faces a real challenge to win the title
This was an engaging match, not the type of classic match we’ve seen between these teams in the past. And thanks to Alexander-Arnold’s late equalizer, it was a fascinating result that strengthened hopes of a proper title fight in the Premier League.
Liverpool look much stronger than last season, revitalized by a much-needed rebuild of their midfield department. This was a crucial test of their mettle, and despite some shaky moments throughout the afternoon, including Haaland’s header that grazed the front of Alisson’s goal in the eighth minute of stoppage time, they showed their courage. will return to Merseyside with the 1-1 draw.
Manchester City remain at the top of the table, just one point behind Liverpool, but Arsenal could regain the top spot with a win against Brentford tonight. It feels like one of those seasons where there could be regular changes at the top of the table, with both Arsenal and this time Liverpool showing their desire to challenge for the title in their games against the champions.
This run of games always looks tough for Manchester City, with draws at Chelsea (4-4) and Liverpool (1-1) before they face Tottenham Hotspur at home and Aston Villa away. They are still the favorites to retain the title, but this is the second consecutive game in which they have dropped points from a winning position. And if this is a legitimate title fight, Liverpool clearly want to be part of it.
Oliver Kay
Alexander-Arnold shows why Liverpool are taking him forward
Trent Alexander-Arnold may have felt his main job was to stop tricky winger Jeremy Dok, but manager Klopp has recently demanded more from his key utility player. There is.
In a hybrid role that combines work as a right-back with central midfield duties, Alexander-Arnold will have to become the best in the world in both positions.
With his quality at both ends of the pitch, it was no surprise that his calm finishing earned Liverpool a point.
After heroic defending to keep City at bay, Liverpool ran up the opposition and discovered the benefits of having Alexander-Arnold in a forward position.
Breaking into the box to increase his chances of attack, he collected Mohamed Salah’s pass, moved forward with one touch and fired cleanly past Ederson.
Timely contributions like these will determine how successful he is in his new position, playing for both Liverpool and England. Not only does he need to make an impact in attack, he also needs to perform well in defence, stepping up in the biggest test of the season and running the ball the most times (9 times) of any Liverpool player. Obtained.
greg evans
Alisson’s poor kick behind Haaland’s goal – it could have been worse
Alisson was found guilty on two different counts for conceding Haaland’s opener. Not only did he let the ball wriggle under his hands and go inside, but he also gave the ball away cheaply from the start, trying to slam a long ball downfield but slicing it into the air. . City took full advantage of Liverpool’s readiness to rush forward on the counter and easily broke through.
Even before that, Alisson had appeared nervous on the ball twice. Ten minutes later, as Liverpool tried to play from the back, he passed straight to Phil Foden (black arrow below is the shortest). Foden seemed very surprised by the situation and meekly fired at the Brazilian.
Eight minutes later, there was a tense moment when Haaland almost tackled Alisson (a long yellow arrow across his own goal) as Liverpool’s goalkeeper took too long to handle the ball.
All three mistakes were different. One was a lack of speed, the other was a botched short pass, and the fatal mistake was probably the least of the three, at least giving City the chance to play the ball closer to the halfway line rather than in a dangerous position. The point is that it was given. However, this was an unusual performance from Liverpool’s number one, with the referee awarding a free kick after Alisson failed to earn a corner despite relatively little pressure from Manuel Akanji, and Ruben・It was a bit of luck that Diaz’s goal was disallowed.
By the end of the match, he was clearly suffering from a foot injury.
michael cox
Haaland’s goal streak reaches 50 goals
Haaland reached 50 goals in just 48 games, meaning he improved his record for fastest half-century by 17 games. Even if he hadn’t scored against Liverpool, it would have taken him until mid-March to score the one goal he needed to break his record.
The record has been held by Manchester United’s Andy Cole since March 1995, and was his 50th goal in 65 games. The English player reached the milestone by scoring five goals against Ipswich Town.
Kevin Phillips was the second fastest of these players (after Haaland) to score 25 goals, but ended up taking 10th place on the list.
Below is a look at the 10 fastest players to score 50 goals in the Premier League. Haaland was at the front almost from the start and there was little doubt he would break Cole’s record in his sensational debut season.
Unpredictable Nuñez (again)
There were moments this season when it seemed like Nunez was getting back into shape, but he remains inconsistent. Whereas Haaland is machine-like in his efficiency in front of goal, Nunez oscillates between the sublime and the ridiculous, not just within the same match, but sometimes within the same movement.
There will be few chances against Manchester City, so ruthlessness and composure will be essential. We’ve seen those qualities from Nunez at times this season, but not enough, especially away against Newcastle United.
He was cleared by Dominik Szoboszlai in the 17th minute, but was stopped by Dias due to a poor touch. Moments later, he mistimed a run and again Liverpool had a chance to clear him but it ended up being offside. Salah threatened in the second half with a pass that was saved by Ederson, but his shot appeared to have headed into the side netting.
He kept Manchester City’s defenders focused throughout, but at times still looked an uncomfortable fit in a front line built around the finesse of Roberto Firmino.
There’s a widespread belief that at some point things will work out and Nunez will become the best player in the world, but it’s not always easy to believe. That unpredictability seems built-in.
Oliver Kay
Silva takes De Bruyne’s role
Bernardo Silva may not be the best footballer in the Premier League, but he may be the most complete.
Silva, who has been used almost anywhere from left-back to centre-forward by manager Josep Guardiola in recent seasons, was here playing in central midfield and doing what he does best: controlling the game. He was comfortable receiving passes in tight spaces and made several passes that penetrated the attack.
But what Silva did above all was exploit the large space between Salah, who drifted to the left and rarely turned back, and Trent Alexander-Arnold, who was also tasked with drifting into midfield, worrying about Jeremy Doku. was. Silva was essentially unmarked on that side, whether overlapping or running into the channel.
In that respect, Silva is essentially playing Kevin De Bruyne’s role, thriving by doing the same thing from the opposite flank. Julian Alvarez is De Bruyne’s direct successor position-wise, but Silva has stepped up in terms of role.
michael cox
Kasey’s early kick-off matched Klopp’s expectations, but there were other reasons as well.
Before the international break, manager Jurgen Klopp expressed his distaste for the 12:30pm kick-off, fearing it would affect the quality of the match. Unlike previous matches between the two teams, the match was certainly unstable from beginning to end.
But that was probably by design. Man City’s 4-4 draw with Chelsea a few weeks ago was frenetic and chaotic. Guardiola’s side showed much better control against Liverpool, limiting the amount of chances their opponents created. Several times Liverpool took Man City ahead on the counter, but Nunez often made the wrong decisions. Liverpool’s xG is just 0.55, the lowest they have recorded in the top flight this season.
There are similarities between this game and Arsenal’s 1-0 win over Man City last month in that both were down to individual mistakes. Arsenal scored with a brutal goal from Gabriel Martinelli, who took a big deflection from Nathan Ake, and Alisson’s miskick led to Haaland’s goal. So far, matches between this season’s title contenders have resembled complex chess matches more than thrilling heavyweight boxing battles.
Alexander-Arnold’s equalizing goal in the 80th minute didn’t change anything. Instead of aiming for a first win at the Etihad since November 2015, Klopp replaced Nunez and McAllister with Harvey Elliott and Wataru Endo. The focus was on holding on to the point and not letting all three points slip away. After all, Manager Klopp may have had a point about this kick-off time…
Jay Harris
Jota’s slight touch
Diogo Jota has scored in four of Liverpool’s last six games and up until this weekend had scored two goals in two games.
But at Etihad, it was a different story as he was at the top. The Portuguese attacker was stranded, unable to generate his usual destructive power on the ball, and it appeared as if he had become invisible and unconscious during massive spells.
His moments of action were few and far between, making it easier for Kyle Walker, who was tasked with keeping him quiet at City’s right-back.
There were no signs of chemistry with Nunez emerging, and by the time he was substituted in the 53rd minute, Jota left the pitch as the most ineffective player on the pitch, with the fewest touches (12).
Perhaps the 90 minutes against Liechtenstein on Thursday night played a role in his performance.
What’s next for Manchester City?
Tuesday, November 28th: RB Leipzig (H), Champions League 8pm GMT, 5pm ET
City have already qualified for the knockout stages after four games, but a win or a draw will ensure they will top Group G.
Sunday, December 3rd: Tottenham (H), Premier League, 4:30pm GMT, 11:30am ET
What’s next for Liverpool?
Thursday, November 30th: LASK (H), Europa League, 8pm GMT, 3pm ET
Liverpool have a two-point lead at the top of Group E and could seal their place in the knockout stages with a win.
Sunday, December 3rd: Fulham (H), Premier League, 2pm GMT, 9am ET.
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(Top photo: Sean Botterill/Getty Images)
