Manchester City celebrated Pep Guardiola’s 1,000th match as a manager in style, cruising to victory against Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium. The meeting of two title contenders turned into a one-sided affair, with City dominating to go second and trim Arsenal’s lead to four points.
Erling Haaland continued his remarkable scoring form, netting his 28th goal of the season with a soaring header into the right corner from Matheus Nunes’ cross. The Norway striker had earlier missed a penalty, but made amends to set City on their way.
Liverpool thought they had equalized before half-time through Virgil van Dijk’s header, but the goal was ruled out for offside. City added insult to injury in first-half stoppage time when Nico Gonzalez’s 20-yard shot deflected in off Van Dijk.
Jeremy Doku tormented the Liverpool defense, producing a moment of individual brilliance to extend City’s lead soon after the hour, curling a superb right-foot effort beyond Mamardashvili from 20 yards.
The result halts Liverpool’s recent mini-revival and sends a strong message to the rest of the Premier League. City’s momentum is building, and they’ll be looking to keep the pressure on Arsenal when they next take to the pitch.
