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2023/24 English Premier League
Matchday 13
Manchester City v Liverpool
Etihad Stadium
Manchester, England
Saturday, 25 November 2023
Kick-off is at 14h30
Liverpool have a chance to climb to the
Premier League summit when they lock horns with Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, November 25 in the lunchtime kick-off.
The Reds have capitalised on everyone around them slipping up earlier this month to close within a point of the league leaders in second place after steadily gaining momentum in recent weeks.
A 3-0 victory over Brentford at Anfield on November 12 extended their unbeaten run to five matches since suffering their first defeat of the season against Tottenham.
Jurgen Klopp's side are above Arsenal (3rd) on goal difference with both teams sitting on 17 points, while Spurs dropped down to fourth position after losing their last two games against Chelsea and Wolves.
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The Citizens' defensive frailties were exposed once more in a 4-4 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge last time out and they've now conceded 12 goals from their opening 12 matches.
The eight-goal thriller in London arrested a three-game winning streak for Pep Guardiola's side, who just managed to stay just ahead of the chasing pack going into the international break.
Manuel Akanji underlined his importance to City with a goal in each of their last two games. The Switzerland international slotted straight into the backline upon his arrival at the Etihad Stadium from Borussia Dortmund in September 2022 and helped City retain the domestic title in his debut season. He finally opened his account in the league against Bournemouth and has featured in nine of the club's 12 matches, missing the derby clash with Manchester United through suspension.
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Mohamed Salah has spearheaded Liverpool's challenge with 10 goals in 12 appearances this term to trail City striker Erling Haaland by three in the scoring charts. The Egypt international bagged two goals in a game three times in 2023-24 and he scored in three successive outings prior to the 1-1 draw with Luton at Kenilworth Road.
Guardiola admitted City could have defended better against the Blues, but felt the result was a fair reflection of the contest despite conceding a penalty deep into stoppage time.
"Could be better, but could be worse too, so it's good for the Premier League," the Spaniard said. "They started better, they are trying to build something here with a lot of new players.
"It was a tight game, we had our moments when it was 2-3 in our transitions - not to kill the game, because with 40 minutes left, many things can happen.
"We had moments and our goal at 3-4 - we were lucky, and we didn't make perfect decisions, but the quality they have, it is what it is. Right now, it was a fair result - both teams played to win.
"Many things were going to happen, but of course, we are ahead going into added time, we could defend better, and the penalty is a penalty. We created a lot of chances - the most in my visits to Stamford Bridge, but they created a lot, too."
Klopp confessed that going second in the table after the win over the Bees hadn't even crossed his mind, although he insists it's still early days and claims he'll start entertaining talk of the title if Liverpool remain up there in the final two months of the campaign.
"I didn't think about it, but I got told. It feels good but it's November. What is really important is we have the points tally similar to other teams because we obviously didn't play perfect football yet, not even close," the German said.
"We fight our way through, we've had good moments, less-good moments. We showed today, it's all fine, but in the end you have to keep going with all the other teams until March or April or whatever.
"If we are still there then we can start talking, [but] until then you fight your way through the most difficult league in the world."
Head-to-Head (Last Five Premier League Meetings)
Matches - 5
Man City - 2
Liverpool - 1
Draws - 2
Premier League Matchday 13 fixtures:
Saturday, November 25
14h30: Manchester City v Liverpool
17h00: Burnley v West Ham United
17h00: Luton Town v Crystal Palace
17h00: Newcastle United v Chelsea
17h00: Nottingham Forest v Brighton & Hove Albion
17h00: Sheffield United v Bournemouth
19h30: Brentford v Arsenal
Sunday, November 26
16h00: Tottenham Hotspur v Aston Villa
18h30: Everton v Manchester United
Monday, November 27
22h00: Fulham v Wolverhampton Wanderers
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