Liverpool vs Manchester City: Preview, Team News, Lineups, Prediction and Other PL Games Today

Liverpool host Manchester City at Anfield on Sunday, with City leading the table and a lot of noise around the club after the international break.

When is Liverpool vs Manchester City?

Liverpool vs Manchester City in the Premier League takes place on Sunday at Anfield. Kick-off is at 4:30pm UK time, which is also 4:30pm West Africa Time (WAT).

How Manchester City Have Started

On the pitch, City couldn’t have asked for more. They’re the only team with a 100% record after five league games, and they’ve won those five by an aggregate score of 13-5. They’ve also started well in the Champions League and the EFL Cup. Their only defeat this season was the Community Shield against Arsenal.

Their last game was a wild one. They beat Sunderland 5-3, though Brian Brobbey scored a hat-trick for the visitors and gave them a real scare.

The bigger story came off the pitch during the break. An independent commission found City guilty of almost all of the 115 charges brought by the Premier League more than three years ago. The charges include setting up sham contracts to hide the true financial figures and refusing to cooperate with the investigation. City strongly deny any wrongdoing and have appealed. The appeal has to be finished within 12 weeks, so Enzo Maresca can only focus on what happens on the pitch for now.

Liverpool Want to Make a Statement

Liverpool are unbeaten this season in all three competitions, but the league form has been less convincing. They’ve won two and drawn three, beating Ipswich and then Bournemouth 1-0 last time out to move up to sixth. In all competitions, they’ve won four of their last five, scoring eight and conceding just one.

The mood around the game will matter too. Liverpool finished second to City in 2013-14, in the middle of the period covered by the charges, and their fans will feel that more than most. Anfield is expected to be extremely loud, and supporters of other clubs will be behind Liverpool as well. It’s also the first Liverpool vs City game since 2015 without Jurgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola on the touchlines, with Andoni Iraola and Maresca in charge instead.

The History Is Mixed

City have won their last three against Liverpool, including the most recent visit to Anfield in February. They won all three meetings last season. Liverpool have won only one of their last four home games against City, in December 2024.

Head-to-Head and Key Numbers

• City have won their last three games against Liverpool, including their last visit to Anfield in February.
• Liverpool have won just one of their last four home games against City, in December 2024.
• City are the only team to win all five of their opening league games.
• Only Brighton have scored more league goals than City’s 13, but City have kept just two clean sheets.
• Liverpool are unbeaten this season, but have won only two of their first five league games under Iraola.
• Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak have scored five of Liverpool’s seven league goals this season.
• Erling Haaland has five goals in five league games, and has reached 169 goals for City in just 205 games.

Squad and Team News

City had a scare over Haaland, who seemed to limp off while playing for Norway against Portugal. Maresca has said there are no serious worries about him for this game. Nico O’Reilly (knock) and Antoine Semenyo (ankle) have no update, but neither is thought to have a serious problem. Phil Foden has finished his three-game suspension.

Liverpool have a bigger problem up front. Isak withdrew from the Sweden squad with a thigh injury and is out. Gakpo (ankle) is also out, and Hugo Ekitike (Achilles) will be out for several more weeks. Iraola may have to use Bradley Barcola as his main striker. There’s better news at the back. Jeremy Jacquet (thigh) is fit and Federico Chiesa (back) is back in training. Conor Bradley and Giovanni Leoni both have knee injuries and will miss out.

Possible Lineups

Liverpool: Alisson in goal, with Araujo, Jacquet, Van Dijk and Kerkez at the back. Mac Allister and Szoboszlai sit in midfield, with Ngumoha, Wirtz and Munoz behind Barcola.

Manchester City: Donnarumma in goal, with Nunes, Guehi, Dias and Gvardiol across the back. Fernandez and Anderson are in midfield, and Ndiaye, Cherki and Doku support Haaland.

Tactical Verdict

Liverpool’s lack of strikers is a real worry. Gakpo and Isak have scored most of their league goals, and Barcola leading the line is a gamble. They should still create chances, and Anfield will help them press City high and make the game uncomfortable.

City have been strong, but they haven’t been tight at the back, with only two clean sheets and five conceded against Sunderland and others. A couple of their players, including O’Reilly and Guehi, also made mistakes in the break, perhaps with the charges on their minds. It’s hard to know how the news will affect the team’s focus in such a hostile atmosphere.

Prediction

Liverpool 2-2 Manchester City. This fixture is always hard to call, and the added drama makes it harder. Liverpool should feed off the crowd and score more than once, even without their main strikers, but City have enough quality in Haaland and the attack to take a point.

Other Premier League Games Today

Two games kick off at 2pm, and then Liverpool and Manchester City close out the day at Anfield. Times are UK time, which matches West Africa Time (WAT) right now.

• Crystal Palace vs Nottingham Forest: 2:00pm
• Hull City vs Everton: 2:00pm