Manchester City beat ten-man Liverpool to revive the Premier League title race

Manchester City’s Erling Haaland converted an injury time penalty to give his team a 2-1 victory at Liverpool on Sunday. In doing so, he closed the gap with Premier League leaders Arsenal to six points and breathed new life into the title race.

The Norwegian’s 21st league goal of the season capped a thrilling comeback after Dominik Szoboszlai’s stunning free-kick put Liverpool ahead in the 74th minute before Bernardo Silva equalized late on before Haaland’s decisive penalty.

In a chaotic final, City’s Rayan Cherki appeared to have scored from the halfway line after goalkeeper Alisson ventured onto the pitch, with Haaland and Szoboszlai both sprinting and struggling as the ball crept over the line.

However, the referee disallowed the goal after a VAR check and awarded City a free kick, while Szoboszlai was sent off for pulling Haaland’s shirt.

«Come on referee, give the goal and go home,» City boss Pep Guardiola told the club BBC. «It was a brilliant advertisement for the Premier League. The first half was very good and in the second half we lost some momentum. That’s how Anfield can feel.»

“What an attack from Szoboszlai and then we come back, led by our captain Bernardo.”

City are staring at a nine-point deficit, but the win keeps Pep Guardiola’s side in contention, while Liverpool dropped to sixth place, now 11 points behind City.

GUEHI EXHANDED NEAR A FIELD

The visiting side dominated early possession to silence the Anfield crowd, with Haaland almost opening the scoring in the second minute when Silva played him through, but goalkeeper Alisson sprinted off his line to smother the effort.

City’s January signing Marc Guehi was met with hostility from the Liverpool crowd, with boos as he touched the ball – a stark reminder of his failed summer move to Anfield from Crystal Palace.

But the England defender kept his composure and denied dangerous chances for Mohamed Salah and Hugo Ekitike as Liverpool failed to get a shot on target in the first half pdf view.

Towards the end of the opening period, Salah shouted for a penalty after Silva pulled him during a set-piece as the Egyptian fell over attempting a shot.

However, neither the referee nor VAR noticed a foul, leaving the teams deadlocked at half-time.

After being second best in the first half, Liverpool emerged transformed after the restart, firing four shots in eleven minutes as the Anfield crowd found their voice.

Evasive free kick by SZOBOSZLAI

Ekitike missed two chances as Szoboszlai tested City keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma before the Hungarian midfielder’s moment of magic arrived with a swerving free-kick that sailed past the Italian, who could only watch as he found the net.

But City’s response was swift as they equalized ten minutes later when Haaland headed a cross over the defense for Silva to score from the edge of the six-yard box.

The decisive moment came in extra time when Matheus Nunes was brought down by Alisson in the penalty area after crossing on the right flank, allowing Haaland to surge forward and silence the crowd with his first goal at Anfield.

Haaland had scored one league goal since the turn of the year and the forward celebrated by taking off his shirt as City breathed a sigh of relief with three points in the bag.

“For the distance we have to Arsenal, it is by far the most difficult place in the Premier League to get here, but we had to go for another goal,” Silva told Sky Sports. “When I scored I was happy, but we needed one more and Erling got it.

«We could have been closer to Arsenal… I feel like the whole team knew before the game that if we lost, the title race would probably be over. We felt like we had to win.»

Published on February 9, 2026