Pep Guardiola, manager of Manchester City, said last Friday that Liverpool will always be his team’s biggest rivals in the Premier League and that he is not being ruled out for the title. This Sunday, the two giants, the undisputed dominators of English football in recent years, meet again at Anfield, but the truth Jürgen Klopp’s team is now 11thwith a match pending, 13 points behind the ‘citizen’ team, 2nd, one behind the leader, Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.
Liverpool and City met for the last time on July 30. The ‘reds’ then stayed at the King Power Stadium with the Community Shield by winning 3-1. That afternoon Erling Haaland made his official City debut but was unable to beat the ‘reds’. This Sunday the big worry for Klopp and his players was that the Norwegian star, stratospheric top scorer in the championship with 15 goals, did not receive the ball.
Ten points added from 8 Premier games is Liverpool’s worst Premier League start in a decade (since 2012-13, when they finished 7th). But, morale has recovered after beating Rangers 7-1 on Wednesday in the Champions, with a brace from Roberto Firmino and a hat trick from Mohamed Salah (in 6 minutes and 12 seconds, the fastest in the history of the tournament), the ‘reds’ are confident at Anfield that this Sunday’s match against their opponent of antonomasia now is its turning point. The ‘citizens’ came from a Champions League draw in Copenhagen (0-0 on Tuesday).
Klopp has a last-minute question. This is defender Ibrahima Konaté due to a muscle injury. However, the French defender has not been ruled out for this summit meeting between Premier League champions City and runners-up Liverpool. It remains to be seen whether the German coach, who is without Luis Díaz until December, will line up Darwin Núñez (who scored against City) or start from the bench.
Klopp: “We can’t compete”
Klopp insisted that “we cannot compete with City financially, they do what they want, they have the best team in the world. and they added the best striker on the market”.
City have gone 21 Premier games without defeat and away from home has a 22-game unbeaten run in the championship. A streak Liverpool will try to break. In the case of the ‘citizens’, one unknown is whether Pep Guardiola (who has lost 11 games against Klopp and won 9) will line up Jack Grealish this Sunday at Anfield or bet on Riyad Mahrez.
Klopp-Pep. Another great classic this Sunday, after Real Madrid-Barcelona, and also with Haaland.
Source: La Verdad
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