Sport

City’s Comeback Keeps the Title Race Alive

Liverpool fans weren’t the only ones who celebrated Dominik Szoboszlai’s freekick stunner against Manchester City on Sunday. At the time it flew into the back of Gianluigi Donnarumma’s net from 25 yards out, it appeared an uppercut had landed on City’s chin and their chances of winning the Premier League title.

By full-time, though, Pep Guardiola’s team were celebrating a rare win at Anfield and a result that leads many to believe they could still overhaul Arsenal’s advantage at the top of the table. It was clear in the way Erling Haaland and co. celebrated at the end that they still have the scent of the Gunners in their nostrils.

This season has been a transitional one for City. They have spent a lot of money rebuilding their squad over the last three transfer windows, bringing in Marc Guehi and Antoine Semenyo last month. Manchester City needed to get younger and that has happened over the last year or so.

Through this process, though, City have yet to settle on a coherent identity as a team. Guardiola has rolled back from the possession-heavy approach that once defined him as a manager to adopt a more direct style of play designed to get the best out of attackers like Haaland, Semenyo and Omar Marmoush, all of whom started against Liverpool.

By going direct more regularly, Manchester City have been guilty of leaving the back door open in defensive transition. While Rodri’s long-awaited return from injury has steadied things in the centre of the pitch, injuries to Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol have left Guardiola lighter for defensive options than is ideal.

And yet Sunday’s win at Anfield showed why Manchester City can’t be written off as title contenders. They boast a collection of players capable of deciding the biggest of matches when the pressure would crush inferior teams. This season could still continue with City lifting the Premier League title for the fifth time in the last six years.

“All we can now do is breathe down the neck of Arsenal and be there,” said Guardiola when asked about his team’s chances of catching Arsenal in this season’s Premier League title race. “If they sleep,  if they make a mistake, then we have to use it. It’s a big gap but many things can still happen. It’s 13 games in the  Premier League – from my little bit of experience that is a lot of time, a lot. It’s proper.”

City have the deepest attack in the Premier League. While Haaland has struggled to find his best form recently, he remains the best finisher of his generation. Semenyo has settled in quickly as an adaptable forward who can play on either wing or even through the middle as part of a front two.

Marmoush is another option who can fill in across the forward line while Rayan Cherki is getting better and better in his maiden Premier League season since joining from Lyon last summer. Then there’s Tijani Reijnders who has filled the void left by Kevin De Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan with his late runs from central midfield.

Speculation around Guardiola’s future means this could feasibly be his final season as Manchester City manager. The Catalan coach has another year left to run on his contract at the Etihad Stadium, but recent reports have raised the prospect that he might be replaced before the start of the 2026/27 campaign.

If this is to be Guardiola’s farewell, though, Manchester City’s comeback at Anfield could be the catalyst for something special. They’re a long way from being a perfect team, but a perfect team won’t win the Premier League title this season because there isn’t one. City can’t be discounted from contention.