It was all about which of these rivals could capitalise on Arsenal’s draw at Sunderland on Saturday, who could make a statement about their intention to chase down the Premier League leaders? It was Manchester City who cleared their throats and made it plain that they are in this race for the long haul. Liverpool barely got a word in.
The table looks a lot more appealing for Pep Guardiola and his players now, City only four points behind Arsenal, and it was an occasion when they blew Liverpool away. They could shrug off the inconvenience of Erling Haaland missing a controversially awarded 13th-minute penalty to put on a show of strength, particularly in the first half.
