Just when many people thought Manchester City were finally losing their grip on the Premier League title race, they arrived at Anfield and reminded everyone why they have haunted English football for almost a decade. This was not just another league match. This was a statement. This was defiance. This was belief. And above all, this was Erling Haaland showing that he is far from finished.
Anfield is a stadium that eats confidence. It swallows visiting teams whole. Even Pep Guardiola, one of the greatest managers football has ever seen, has struggled there more than almost anywhere else. Manchester City had not beaten Liverpool at Anfield in front of fans since 2003. Back then, City were a different club, a different identity, a different dream. Maine Road was still home. Kevin Keegan was on the touchline. Peter Schmeichel was in goal. The idea of City dominating English football would have sounded like fantasy.
Yet football has a way of rewriting history, and on this dramatic Sunday afternoon, Manchester City did just that.
The pressure was immense. Arsenal were watching closely. Liverpool were desperate. The title race was hanging by a thread. And City knew that anything less than victory would feel like surrender. From the first whistle, Guardiola’s team played like a group that refused to die quietly. They pressed. They passed. They controlled. For large parts of the first half, they looked calm and confident in a stadium where panic usually rules.
Liverpool, under Arne Slot, were not passive. The crowd roared. Every tackle was cheered. Every City touch was booed. Anfield tried to drag Liverpool forward through emotion, through noise, through history. But City stayed composed, moving the ball with patience and purpose, slowing the game when needed, speeding it up when space opened.
Still, City’s familiar weakness returned after the break. Just as they have done too often this season, they began to fade. The grip loosened. The control slipped. And Liverpool sensed blood.
Then came the moment that ignited Anfield. Dominik Szoboszlai stepped up for a free-kick, and with one clean, violent strike, he sent the ball flying into the net. The stadium exploded. Red smoke. Red noise. Red belief. Liverpool were ahead, and for City, the title race seemed to be slipping through their fingers.
It felt like another painful chapter. Another Anfield heartbreak. Another reminder of why this stadium has haunted Guardiola more than almost any other. Rumours had already begun to swirl that this could be Pep’s final season at Manchester City. If that were true, was this how it would end? Another defeat on Merseyside. Another night of frustration.
But Manchester City are not ordinary champions. They are serial survivors. And when the moment demanded courage, Bernardo Silva stepped forward.
City’s captain never hides. He never stops running. He never stops believing. As Liverpool dropped deeper and tried to protect their lead, Bernardo kept pushing, kept shouting, kept driving his teammates forward. And in the 82nd minute, his belief was rewarded. A loose ball. A moment of chaos. A flash of movement. Bernardo Silva struck, and suddenly, the noise changed.
Anfield fell silent. City were alive.
From that moment, the match turned into madness. City smelled weakness. Liverpool felt fear. Wave after wave of blue shirts surged forward, while Liverpool tried desperately to hold on. The crowd, once roaring with confidence, now held its breath with every City attack.
And then came the moment that defined the night.
Alisson Becker, one of the best goalkeepers in the world, made a decision he will replay in his mind for a long time. Instead of standing his ground, instead of trusting his defenders, he rushed out. He collided with Matheus Nunes. The whistle blew. Penalty.
Erling Haaland picked up the ball.
For Haaland, Anfield had been a cursed place. He had come here before. He had lost. He had failed to score. Even earlier in this game, he had missed a clear chance when clean through on goal. The script seemed familiar. The doubts were there. The pressure was enormous.
But great strikers do not hide from moments like this. They live for them.
Haaland placed the ball. Took a breath. Ignored the noise. Ignored the history. Ignored the fear. And with one calm, ruthless strike, he sent the ball into the corner of the net.
City led. Anfield was stunned. Guardiola punched the air. The City bench exploded. Haaland roared.
That goal was more than just three points. It was a message to Arsenal. It was a warning to the league. Manchester City are still here.
The drama was not over. In the chaos of the final moments, Rayan Cherki launched a stunning effort from near the halfway line that somehow found the net, only for it to be ruled out. Moments later, Szoboszlai, the earlier hero, was sent off. Confusion. Anger. Rage. The referee was surrounded. The crowd was furious.
At the other end, Gianluigi Donnarumma produced a breathtaking save to preserve the win, throwing himself across goal in a moment that will not be forgotten by City fans anytime soon.
When the final whistle blew, it confirmed something that had not happened since 1937. Manchester City had completed a league double over Liverpool. At Anfield. In front of fans. In the middle of a title race.
For Guardiola, this felt personal. On his last visit here, Liverpool fans mocked him, and he responded by holding up six fingers, a reminder of his Premier League titles. This time, he did not need to gesture. The result spoke louder than any response.
For Erling Haaland, this was redemption. The last time he scored at Anfield, he was a teenager playing for Red Bull Salzburg, unknown to most of the world. Now he is the most feared striker in football, and he finally conquered one of the last stadiums that resisted him.
He did not have a perfect game. He missed chances. He was frustrated. But when it mattered most, he delivered. He bullied defenders. He won aerial duels. He showed resilience. And when the penalty came, he showed ice-cold composure.
For Liverpool, this defeat was painfully familiar. Not just the loss, but the timing. This was the fourth time this season they have conceded a 90th-minute winner. Four times. That is not bad luck. That is a pattern. And it is a pattern that could cost them dearly.
Arne Slot has done impressive work. Liverpool have improved. They have played exciting football. They have shown character. But moments like this expose the fine margins at the top level. Winning titles is not about playing well for 80 minutes. It is about surviving the final 10.
Hugo Ekitike felt the weight of expectation on this night. Coming into the match in fine form, compared to Fernando Torres by some, he had chances to be the hero. But big games demand big moments, and Ekitike missed his. Wide finishes. Poor angles. Missed headers. Against teams like City, those chances do not come twice.
Marc Guehi, meanwhile, played like a man determined to prove a point. Booed by the Anfield crowd for choosing City over Liverpool, he responded with a defensive masterclass. Calm. Strong. Intelligent. He shut down attacks, blocked shots, and stood tall in the most hostile environment imaginable.
Alisson, usually Liverpool’s saviour, became their villain. One rash decision undid an otherwise solid performance. At this level, one mistake is all it takes.
Away from the title race, the result was celebrated quietly in Manchester and London. Manchester United fans smiled. Chelsea supporters nodded in approval. Liverpool’s collapse widened the gap in the race for Champions League places, pushing the Reds dangerously close to another season in the Europa League.
For Arsenal fans, the emotions were mixed. Their team continues to win. Their performances remain strong. But Manchester City are back in their mirrors, breathing down their necks, just as they have done before. The memories of past collapses return. The fear creeps in. City have done this before. And they look ready to do it again.
This match was not just about three points. It was about belief, mentality, and survival. It was about champions refusing to step aside. It was about Liverpool being reminded that progress is fragile. And it was about a striker named Erling Haaland, standing in the heart of Anfield, proving that he is not done yet.
The title race lives on. Arsenal are still ahead. But Manchester City have sent their message loud and clear. Ignore them at your own risk.
