Last season’s Premier League title race was undoubtedly one for the ages, as Manchester City lifted the trophy with just one point separating them from Liverpool.
The matches between the two sides were must-watch entertainment.
Whether it was Rodri’s crucial block in the 86th minute during their first meeting, or the back and forth nature of their second meeting with goals from each side coming within minutes of each other.
The only match between the two sides which saw a team win was the FA Cup semi-final, where the Reds took down Pep Guardiola's side 3-2.
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When the stakes are that high and each fixture comes down to the final whistle, a rivalry is created.
This rivalry is something which Manchester City's Pep Guardiola touched on in his Community Shield Programme Notes.
“Liverpool are an incredible rival for us.
“It's such an honour to compete with them for trophies because they are so good.”
As the rivalry has been going on for quite some time now, the Catalan is certain that it will continue on well into the upcoming season.
“City and Liverpool have pushed each other for a long time and I am sure that will continue this season,” said Guardiola.
Despite competing for it all against the Merseyside club's head coach Jurgen Klopp, Pep Guardiola praised the German mastermind’s ability to prepare his players.
“Jurgen is so good at what he does, and his players are always well prepared,” said Guardiola.
Guardiola and Klopp’s rivalry goes back to when the two coached different teams in the Bundesliga, with the Catalan coaching Bayern Munich and the German coaching Borussia Dortmund.
The two sides go into Saturday evening’s clash off the back of two very different pre-season tours.
The Cityzen’s toured the United States, debuting Erling Haaland and Julian Alvarez, while beating both Club America and Bayern Munich.
Liverpool had a trickier pre-season tour, dropping a game to Manchester United and RB Salzburg, while balancing it out with two clean wins against Crystal Palace and RB Leipzig.
Darwin Nunez, who joined the Reds from Benfica for £85 million, made a hot start, scoring four goals against the Bundesliga side.
With Saturday’s Community Shield being the next chapter in the rivalry, it is sure to have all of the fireworks and flair of their previous meetings as another trophy is on the line.
Topics: Pep Guardiola, Liverpool, Manchester City, Premier League, Football
Declan Harris