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Manchester City succumbed to their first defeat of the season on Sunday afternoon as rivals Liverpool won a close encounter at Anfield.
The much anticipated Premier League clash got off to a cagey start with a goalless first-half that was mainly devoid of chances.
Excitement ensued with an action-packed second-half as Phil Foden believed he had given City the lead, but the goal was ruled out by VAR for a foul in the buildup.
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This was all before Mohammed Salah had the ball in the back of the net for the home side and this one did count, giving Liverpool the lead.
The result means City have lost their undefeated record this season, ending an impressive run of 13 games.
Pep Guardiola’s side had not tasted defeat in the league since February, when a late Harry Kane goal snatched a Tottenham Hotspur win.
Liverpool started the match the more comfortable of the two teams, with some early pressure causing City to not look as fluid as they regularly do.
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The Premier League champions settled more as the game went on, but the contest remained cautious with 20 minutes gone.
Both sides had several corners but wasted them with no clear cut chances coming for either side, as the first-half trundled along.
A clear cut chance did come with just over five minutes left to play as Kevin De Bruyne curled in a ball for Haaland, whose header was straight at Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson.
Anthony Taylor blew his whistle and the battling sides went into the break with the score goalless, having played a cagey and fraught 45 minutes on the Anfield pitch.
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The second-half began in the complete opposite manner to the first as City looked the more comfortable of the pair.
This was before Mohammed Salah raced through one-on-one with Ederson following a rare Ruben Dias slip, leading to a wonderful save from the Brazilian to deny Liverpool’s forward.
City then thought they had taken the lead through Phil Foden, who smashed in from close range, but the goal was chalked off by VAR in retrospect for a foul by Haaland on Fabinho in the build-up.
After 10 minutes or so of pressure for both teams, Haaland had a powerful shot across the ground that was well saved by Alisson, keeping the contest goalless.
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Then it was Liverpool’s turn to attack and Salah found himself in a decent position in the City box, only to curl his effort wide as he looked to hit the bottom left corner of the goal.
It was not long after until Salah did get his goal as he raced through one-on-one to smash the ball past a deflated Ederson after Joao Cancelo was beaten to the ball.
A fiery encounter on the touchine between Jurgen Klopp and the referee’s assistant resulted in the German manager being sent off, much to the Anfield crowd’s anger.
As time ran out, Guardiola decided to make a substitution in an attempt to get City back into a game that was running away from them.
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Argentine Julian Alvarez was brought on for City captain Ilkay Gundogan with just one minute of regulation time remaining.
Six minutes was added on for the various stoppages throughout the open second-half.
This was enough time for Liverpool substitute Trent Alexander-Arnold to miss an open net from mere yards out after a cross from fellow substitute Darwin Nunez.
The defeat leaves City second place in the Premier League table, trailing leaders Arsenal by four points.
These two sides were set for a league clash with each other this upcoming midweek but the game has been postponed.
City’s next game will be at home against Brighton & Hove Albion on Saturday in the Premier League.
Featured Image Credit: PA Images / AlamyTopics: Liverpool, Manchester City, Premier League, Football
