Guardiola’s 1000th game adds extra weight to City–Liverpool battle

Matches between Manchester City and Liverpool have often defined Premier League title races in recent seasons, but Sunday's encounter may simply indicate which of the two sides is better placed to chase current leaders Arsenal.

Guardiola 'desperate to play against Liverpool'

City lost both home and away fixtures to Liverpool last season as they were dethroned as champions, and manager Pep Guardiola admitted he was surprised by Liverpool's inconsistency this term.

"Of course, but sometimes it's about momentum," Guardiola said. "All the clubs are there except Arsenal, who are more consistent than anyone.

"But the season is long, so we try to be there and see what happens. To be honest, I'm so excited and happy to prepare for Sunday. I'm desperate to play against Liverpool."

Foden is 'back', warns City boss

Phil Foden impressed in the win over Dortmund, scoring twice to register his first European goals of the season and doubling his tally across all competitions. The England forward, who struggled last season with off-field issues and injuries, appears to have rediscovered his best form after being one of City's standout performers during their Premier League-winning 2023/24 campaign.

"Phil is back," Guardiola said. "How many times have we seen Phil score these types of goals? We missed this a lot last season, but this year I think he's going to help us a lot.

"He's a special player, we need his goals, and hopefully today was the first step. It's important to have him ready for the big match on Sunday."

Van Dijk says Liverpool must build from the back

Before their 2-0 win over Aston Villa on Saturday, Liverpool had gone 10 matches without a clean sheet.

"It's easy to say now because we've won twice in a row. In a world of chaos, you have to stay calm and keep perspective," captain Virgil van Dijk said. "We all know how football works – it can change overnight."

Liverpool face another major test of their title defence on Sunday, with Van Dijk set to face Erling Haaland, who has already scored 26 goals this season for club and country.

"You can see Arsenal are flying at the moment, and that's down to clean sheets and not conceding chances," Van Dijk added. "We have the quality to hurt anyone on the break, but it all starts with defending.

"Today you saw the hard work. We have to keep going – Sunday will be another difficult one."

Slot looking forward to 'Clasico' against City

Liverpool boss Arne Slot said he was not surprised by his team's recent upturn in form but admitted that playing away at Manchester City would be a far greater challenge.

"Our main focus right now is consistency. We've lost more games than we usually do… We were consistent, but we were consistently losing. That wasn't the idea," Slot joked ahead of the clash.

"It wasn't a surprise for me how the last two games went. It helped that the other team did what we expected them to do."

Slot added that his attention was fully on City rather than the league standings.

"Similar to the 'Clasico,' these are the games everyone looks forward to," he said. "What I like about Pep Guardiola's teams is that 10 times out of 10, you get what you're hoping for – a great game of football. No time-wasting or the kind of things I've started to dislike more and more about the game."

Head-to-head

Liverpool have the superior record in the fixture, winning 110 of the clubs' 218 meetings. City have won 60, while 58 have ended in draws.

The Reds' league double over City last season included a 2-0 win at the Etihad in February, with goals from Mohamed Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai, sending the eventual champions 11 points clear.

City's most recent victory over Liverpool came in April 2023, a 4-1 win at the Etihad on a tense day that saw accusations of City's players being targeted by Liverpool fans and Guardiola being criticised for celebrating provocatively in front of the Liverpool substitutes.