Manchester City face a trip to Anfield on Sunday afternoon, where a win against Liverpool could potentially send City to the top of the Premier League.
After their 4-0 win over Southampton last week, City sit just one point behind Arsenal in first place, with Pep Guardiola's side having scored three or more goals in their last three Premier League outings. With Liverpool sat 10th in the league and 13 points behind City, the visitors enter this clash as the big favourites for three points.
It's unusual for City and Liverpool to face each other whilst not being neck and neck in a title race, with the Reds having started the season poorly. Last season saw the two sides draw both league games, whilst the season prior saw City beat Liverpool 4-1 at Anfield.
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Kyle Walker and Kalvin Phillips both remain on the sidelines, whilst the clash may come too early for John Stones to make a return. So, could City overcome Liverpool on Sunday?
We simulated the game to find out. To complete this simulation, we used FIFA 23 and updated the squads with the latest injuries and suspensions.
We simulated Liverpool vs Man City to get a score prediction
We predict that the hosts could line up in a 4-3-3 formation, with their line-up as follows: Alisson; Gomez, Konate, Van Dijk, Robertson; Henderson, Fabinho, Thiago; Salah, Nunez, Firmino.
We predict that City could set up in a 4-3-3 formation, with their line-up as follows: Ederson; Akanj, Dias, Ake, Cancelo; De Bruyne, Rodri, Silva; Foden, Haaland, Grealish.
City started quickly and came close on multiple occasions in the opening stages of the game, only to be denied by some fantastic goalkeeping. Guardiola's side were in full control at Anfield, but completely against the run of play, Liverpool took the lead with their first chance of the game.
With the Reds sitting deep and City pushing for the opener, Liverpool caught them on the break, with Mohamed Salah leading a rapid counterattack. As the winger closed in on goal, he slid a pass through to Darwin Nunez, and the striker drilled his effort into the far corner to put his side ahead.
Despite going a goal behind, City continued to press for a goal, but Alisson was in the form of his life, stopping anything and everything City threw at him. But, City had the chance to level the score in the second half as a penalty was awarded.
A 50/50 saw Haaland and Virgil van Dijk both challenge for the ball, but the Norwegian striker got to the ball first, being hauled down by Van Dijk in the process. Kevin De Bruyne stepped up to take, but his effort was poor and Alisson guessed the right way.
The Brazilian was having the game of his life and single-handedly keeping Liverpool in the game. Haaland, Phil Foden, Bernardo Silva and Rodri were all denied by the 'keeper, with Liverpool holding on to the lead by a thread.
City looked destined to score multiple times in the second half, but they couldn't find a way past Alisson. And, with 10 minutes remaining, Liverpool doubled their lead with just their third shot of the game when Roberto Firmino tapped a cross past Ederson from close range.
FIFA 23 predicted final score: Liverpool 2-0 Man City
Here are the full-time match stats.
FIFA 23 predicts that despite controlling the game over 90 minutes and having 20 shots to Liverpool's three, City fell to a 2-0 defeat in the simulation. Alisson made 15 saves including a De Bruyne penalty, but it's unlikely that the 'keeper could produce such a performance in real life, suggesting City could dominate against Liverpool on Sunday.
What do you think the final score will be? Let us know in the comments below.
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