LONDON — Liverpool host Manchester City as the two teams who have shared the last seven Premier League titles (Man City six, Liverpool one) meet at one of the great stadiums in world sports.
Anfield is always hyped, but for this game, at this moment, the noise levels will be deafening.
Liverpool unexpectedly sit eight points clear of freefalling Man City heading into this game. A win for Liverpool would go a long way toward knocking four-time reigning champs City out of the title race and pushing the challengers a step closer to winning their second English league title in the last 35 years.
Here’s what you need to know before kickoff Sunday at 11 a.m. ET in a game that airs on USA Network and streams on nbc.com.
Has a change of manager given Liverpool the edge in the title race?
Replacing Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool was the equivalent of replacing Bill Belichick or Andy Reid, but Arne Slot has already somehow made Klopp, who won seven major trophies in his eight years and totally rebuilt the club back to a global power, look like an underachiever. Slot has won 15 of his first 17 games in all competitions. Liverpool are top of the Premier League and Champions League tables.
How have they done it?
There have been subtle tweaks to Klopp’s high-pressing “heavy metal football” with Slot’s rhythmic possession-based style intertwined.
Ryan Gravenberch and Curtis Jones are the new, unexpected, conductors in midfield. They drift around, cushion passes and deftly produce a killer pass. Klopp’s Liverpool is still there. But this Liverpool pick their moments when to put the throttle to the floor. Slot’s extra wrinkle has happened so quickly that most teams still don’t know how to react to it.
Liverpool is now a two-headed beast. They can lull you into a false sense of security by passing the ball around serenely, boring you into submission. But they can still turn up the pace when they want to. Preparing to play against them has become a dizzying multi-dimensional challenge and nobody can stop them.
Why are four-time reigning Premier League champions Man City in freefall?
Every dynasty has to fall. The superpower Pep Guardiola built appears to be crumbling.
The ongoing off-field charges loom large, but on the pitch Manchester City is without a win in their last six, losing five, and let a 3-0 lead slip against Feyenoord with 15 minutes to go on Tuesday to tie 3-3. They’ve lost three-straight Premier League games. City lost three league games all of last…
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