Manchester City have dominated the Premier League in the last few years and only Liverpool have been able to beat them to a Premier League title.

Both clubs have gone head to head with each other most years, although it was Arsenal that challenged City last season as Liverpool struggled to make their mark, eventually making it to 5th spot and a place in the Europa League.

As the new season got underway, the Citizens opened their account with a 3-0 win over former skipper Vincent Kompany’s Burnley at Turf Moor courtesy of goals from last season’s top scorer Erling Haaland (brace) and Rodri. Pep Guardiola’s side then navigated a difficult Newcastle United at the Etihad Stadium 1-0 to extend their winning start to the new season. 

Two soon became three wins when they secured a gritty 2-1 win over newly-promoted Sheffield United. Haaland and Rodri were the goal scorers once again. Just before the international break, a commanding 5-1 thrashing of Fulham, where Haaland grabbed his first hat trick of the season, followed. 

Manchester City came from a goal down to beat West Ham United on the road before kicking off their UEFA Champions League title defence with another comeback 3-1 win against Red Star Belgrade at the Etihad Stadium. In Premier League action, the Citizens defeated Nottingham Forest 2-0 at home, although midfielder Rodri was sent off.

The absence of the Spanish midfielder saw City lose a couple of games. They were knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Newcastle before suffering a first league defeat of the season to Wolves. In the Champions League, they made it two wins out of two as they defeated RB Leipzig 3-1 in Germany. Just before the October international break, they lost 1-0 to Arsenal at the Emirates, making it two consecutive losses in the Premier League. The struggles were still evident when they faced Brighton, but they took all three points and returned to winning in the Premier League.

The Reds made many changes in the summer, losing a number of players and bringing in four new signings, all midfielders in the form of Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch, and Wataru Endo. Manager Jurgen Klopp is pleased with the work so far, and they look like title contenders again.

Liverpool began the season with a 1-1 draw at Chelsea before coming from a goal down to beat Bournemouth 3-1 at Anfield. Uruguayan Darwin Nunez inspired Liverpool to another comeback win against Newcastle, coming off the bench to score two goals in the final nine minutes to turn a potential defeat into a win for the Reds at St. James’ Park.

Just before the international break, Liverpool defeated Aston Villa 3-0 to claim their first clean sheet of the season. They had a scare against Wolves but recovered to win the game 3-1, before doing the same thing against LASK in the Europa League and Leicester City in the Carabao Cup. Next came that 2-1 defeat to Tottenham in hugely controversial circumstances.

A win over Royale in the Europa League took them back to winning ways before picking up four points in their next two games against Brighton and Everton in the Merseyside derby. A win over Forest got the Reds within touching distance of top spot but two points dropped at Luton has knocked them back a little.

City and Liverpool have met 52 times in the Premier League. City have won 12 matches, Liverpool have 26 wins to their name and 19 games have ended in a draw. 

Match tickets

The match at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester kicks off on Saturday, 25th November, at 12:30 pm UK time, and it will be shown live on TNT Sports, with coverage starting from around midday.

There is a renewed rivalry between the two teams and it is expected to be an exciting contest at the 55,000-capacity stadium in Manchester. City are defending champions but this is a tough battle given the rejuvenation of the visitors since the end of last season. 

Getting Manchester City vs Liverpool tickets will be challenging, given the significance of the game and the kind of opposition. Hence, you are advised to search ticket reselling sites should they be expectedly sold out on each club’s channels. 

Team news

Line-ups

Apart from Kevin De Bruyne (hamstring) and Zack Steffen (Knee surgery), Pep Guardiola has a good squad to choose from. Haaland has not gotten the goals recently and tends to ghost in big games. World Cup winner Alvarez could be given another start here, while Doku has been steadily influencing games in his little way. Midfielders Mateo Kovacic and Matheus Nunes are options in midfield to make his debut in the starting XI as a result.

Manchester City: Ederson; Walker, Dias, Akanji, Ake; Rodri, Nunez; Doku, Alvarez, Foden; Haaland

Jurgen Klopp will be keen to get the best performance from his side at the Etihad Stadium. Tsimikas could start at left-back instead of the injured Robertson, with Mac Allister, and Szoboszlai shoe ins for midfield alongside either Gravenberch or Curtis Jones filling the third spot. Meanwhile, Thiago remains a long-term absentee.

Liverpool: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Mac Allister, Szoboszlai, Jonez; Salah, Nunez, Diaz.

Prediction

Manchester City have not lost to Liverpool at home in the Premier League since 2015. The defending champions are imperious at home and have much going for them there. However, Pep Guardiola has suffered 12 defeats at the hands of Jurgen Klopp - the most by any manager he has faced in his career. 

The last time the Citizens failed to score in all competitions against the Reds at the Etihad was in 2012, while a close game is to be expected it's hard to look past City given their incredible home record. 

Manchester City 2-1 Liverpool