Reds defeat Man City to make title statement

There had been little more than millimetres in it during the previous two meetings of English football’s current powerhouses. Remember John Stones’s goalline clearance for Manchester City at the Etihad last January in his team’s 2-1 Premier League win or when Kyle Walker did the same at the very end of the Community Shield at the beginning of this season? City would squeak to victory that day on penalties.

Liverpool authored a different story here, one underpinned by ruthless finishing and which came to be coloured by comfort. The much-hyped top-of-the-table collision was to all intents over when Sadio Mané headed Liverpool into a 3-0 lead on 51 minutes and what it all meant bristled with possibility for his team and the club’s fans, who last knew what it felt like to be league champions in 1990.

Liverpool briefly held a 10-point lead over City last December, although that was cut to seven the following day when Pep Guardiola’s team won their game in hand. And so the nine-point advantage which this victory gave to Liverpool felt like new ground – hugely significant new ground.

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