Premier League: This Top Two Clash Won’t Decide Anything

Liverpool vs Manchester City

It’s the most watched league in the world. And this weekend, it will be perfectly clear just why when the Premier League pace etters meet at Anfield.

Liverpool are top of the league, and visitors Manchester City are a point behind in second place. As well as three points at stake, there are a couple of mesmerising sub plots to this game and the season.

Jurgen Klopp recently announced this would be his final year on Merseyside, and his young team have already delivered silverware, winning the Carabao Cup two weeks ago. 

And the Sky Blues are bidding to be the first team to win the treble for second season in succession.      

Both Liverpool and Manchester City are well aware of the threat Arsenal pose to their title aspirations.

The Gunners beat Sheffield United at a canter on Monday night, 4-0 up within 25 minutes before eventually settling for six. And that win is in a sensational run of results in which Mikel Arteta’s team has scored 21 goals in the last four games, conceding just once.

So this clash is not a title decider by any stretch of the imagination, and the Premier League 2024 betting odds have reacted quickly. Manchester City are still the favourites and slightly odds on at 1.97, while Liverpool are at 3.25 and Arsenal are at 3.50. 

Liverpool come into the game on the back of last-gasp win away to Nottingham Forest, while Manchester City coasted home in the Manchester Derby.

Both teams were in European action in midweek, as City went through to the Champions League quarter-finals after beating Copenhagen 6-2 on aggregate, while Liverpool are away to Slavia Prague in the Europa League on Thursday.

Talking Points

Salah back for the Reds

Liverpool have been winning with a patched up side, though the return to action of wing-back Andrew Robertson has strengthened the team in both defence and attack.

And the Reds have received another boost this week with the news that top scorer Mohammed Salah is back in training and in line for a return against Manchester City.

The Egyptian hitman has only played an hour of football in 2024, and Klopp will be keen to give him some minutes against Slavia Prague, so he is near to getting back to full match fitness before he faces the Sky Blues.  

In Salah’s absence, Darwin Nunez has continued to progress and he scored the winner in the Reds’ victory over Nottingham Forest, but the win was mired in controversy as referee Paul Tierney had given the Reds the ball in error after the game had been stopped due to a head injury.

Liverpool fans won’t care a lot about that, and they will be looking forward to facing Manchester City with both Salah and Nunez in attack.  

Unbeatable Rodri

While the recently returned Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne have been grabbing the Premier League 2024 news headlines, along with the brilliant Phil Foden, who scored a brilliant brace in City’s derby win, defencive midfielder Rodri is the man who makes this team tick.

The Spain international has just broken a league record for the number of games he has played without tasting defeat. 59 games and 395 days have passed since Manchester City lost with Rodri in the side, and that beats the 58 games completed by Chelsea defender Ricardo Carvalho.

The 27-year-old last lost a game for City in February 2023, and since then, the Sky Blues have won the Champions League, in which he scored the winner, the Premier League, the FA Cup, the UEFA Super Cup, and the Club World Cup.         

He played the first half of the match against Copenhagen and was rested after 45 minutes, and Rodri will be up and ready for the fight on Sunday.  

History

With 29 wins to 15, the Reds have had the better of the head-to-heads in the Premier League era. And when the two teams met at the Etihad in November, a late Trent equaliser cancelled out an opener from Haaland in a 1-1 draw.

Recent form has been strong for both with Liverpool winning their last six games, while Manchester City have won five and drawn one. The Reds’ home record is 11 wins and two draws, so can Manchester City be the first team to win at Anfield in the league this year?    

Betting Tip

Yes, I think they can. Manchester City are at SBOTOP odds of 2.23 to win this mega clash with Liverpool at 2.61, and the draw is at 3.34.

The Reds are playing great football for their soon-to-be-departed boss, but the Sky Blues look unplayable at times, and those times are beginning to be more frequent. This could be a big moment in the title race, and a 2-1 win to City, priced at 8.48, is my longer shot choice.

 

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