Manchester City v Liverpool: Three key battles as title hopefuls meet at Etihad

Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp will renew their rivalry once again on Sunday, as Manchester City host Liverpool in a match that could potentially decide who wins the Premier League title. 

Both sides are in fine form, and just a single point separates them ahead of the meeting at the Etihad.

While City looked to have run away with the title at the turn of the year, their form has since dipped and Liverpool are now just a point behind the leaders.

Their close proximity this season is nothing new, though, and in fact if you combine each side’s points total over the last four seasons, there is just a point separating City from Liverpool.

Here, we take a look at three key battles that could determine the result of what proves to be a thrilling encounter of fine margins.

Joao Cancelo v Mohamed Salah

The match up of arguably the best full-back and best forward in the league so far this season will undoubtedly go a long way towards deciding which way this one goes. Cancelo has been in sensational form both defensively and offensively for City this term, although he may find his opportunities to get forward are restricted as Salah will no doubt keep him busy all afternoon. The Egyptian isn’t going into this game in his finest form, although he has still scored 20 league goals already so far this season and few would bet against him adding to that total on Sunday.

De Bruyne and Cancelo have been two of City’s standout performers this term

Kevin De Bruyne v Fabinho

For all of the talent that both sides boast at either end of the pitch, it may well be in the middle of the park that this game is won and lost. De Bruyne has been impressive of late, and has scored five goals and provided an assist in his last five games across all competitions. His advanced role in City’s midfield will pit him against Fabinho, who himself has hit something of a purple patch in front of goal. The Brazilian has scored seven goals in 37 games this season, having managed just three in 122 games prior. His most valuable asst is undoubtedly his defensive abilities, however, and he will be tasked with keeping De Bruyne and co. at bay.

Pep Guardiola v Jurgen Klopp

As cliche as it may sound, the match up of the two managers on Sunday afternoon will be as crucial as any. The pair, arguably the two greatest managers in the world at present, have a long history of fierce rivalry, initlaly starting in Germany, before Guardiola followed Klopp to England.

Klopp and Guardiola have faced eachother 14 times in English football, with the former winning five times and the latter proving victorious on four occasions

The Spaniard has developed something of a reputation for ‘overthinking’ the biggest decisions in the biggest matches, for example last season’s Champions League final against Chelsea, but he will be keen to avoid doing so with so much at stake in this one. Klopp, meanwhile, will play on the idea that his Reds side are somehow underdogs given City’s home advantage. His side have lost just once in the league since the start of November, and may well extend that record against City.

With the latest installment of one of English football’s great rivalries fast approaching, all eyes will be on Manchester to see which side can secure victory and take a huge step towards securing the Premier League title.