LONDON: For Liverpool a perfect weekend. They won a Premier League game away to Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City for the first time to extend their lead to 11 points after closest pursuers Arsenal and Nottingham Forest both lost. The extent of City’s collapse was illustrated by this 14th defeat in their last 27 matches

Goals from Mohamed Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai provided the Reds with only their third Premier League double against City after the 2-0 win at Anfield in December. City’s lone defeat in the clubs’ previous 15 top-flight home duels had been in November 2015, when they lost 4-1 in Jurgen Klopp’s first Etihad visit.

Liverpool manager Arne Slot said: “If you want to win a big game you need a neutral set-piece balance or to score one and not concede. We made sure City didn’t create as much as they normally do. In the second half, I can’t remember them having a big chance. City are so comfortable on the ball that the only chance you have to win here is to defend very well.”

Opposite number Pep Guardiola said: “We played very good. Maybe we missed more productivity in the shots but we played against a fantastic team. Maybe at the start it was 50-50 and we could not convert. Second half they defended very deep. Salah defended today more than previous games. I know the people don’t believe it and I know when we have played really good and we played really good today.”

Uncertainty had hovered over both teams at kickoff. City had taken a heavy beating in Madrid in the Champions League in midweek and their confidence has not been enhanced by the panicky rebuilding undertaken during the January transfer window. Liverpool, despite their commanding lead in the table, had not been performing at their most convincing lately though manager Arnie Slot noted that no team can maintain the same high standard over the full length of a season.

A further problem for City manager Pep Guardiola was the continuing absence of 19-goal top scorer Erling Haaland who had injured a knee the previous week. Haaland had been a non-playing substitute in Spain and was not even in the matchday squad this time.

Liverpool kicked off defending an unbeaten run of 22 league games since their only loss against Nottingham Forest in September. This was already their longest unbeaten run in the competition since a 44-game sequence between January 2019 and February 2020.

City made a lively start but were shocked in the 14th minute when Liverpool took the lead from a textbook corner off the training ground. Dominik Szoboszlai tucked the low kick across the penalty box for Salah to score with the aid of a deflection off Nathan Ake.

Salah’s eighth goal on consecutive games and 25th of the season was also his 241st for the club and meant he has totalled 30 in all competitions in five of his eight years at Anfield. Salah’s importance to Liverpool increased concerns over the club’s failure to reach agreement on an extension to his contract which expires at the season’s end.

City’s own Egyptian, Omar Marmoush, thought he had equalised on the halfhour. Unfortunately the former Frankfurt forward, leading City’s attack in Haaland’s absence, was clearly offside.

More disappointment came City’s way in the 36th minge. This time Salah was the creator. He escaped down the right and squared for the unmarked Szoboszlai to shoot home. City had only themselves to blame for poor defending which would been unthinkable in their four previous title-winning seasons.

Liverpool had a third goal by Szoboszlai denied after a VAR ruling of offside against Curtis Jones and Ederson saved well from Luis Diaz.

The final whistle thus saw Liverpool having converted last season’s nine-point deficit to City into a 20-point advantage. City remain fourth going to a reviving Tottenham on Wednesday but now with Newcastle trailing them only on goal difference.

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