Josep Guardiola’s Manchester City came from behind to win 2-1 after an upset, with Erling Haaland’s stoppage-time penalty keeping Manchester City in the title race.
After drawing three blanks, the Norwegian international scored his second Premier League goal since Christmas and his first at Anfield, giving the visiting team their first win in front of a crowd since 2003.
The City striker then chased down Rayan Cherki’s shot from inside his own half along with Dominik Szoboszlai, and was involved in a bizarre finish that saw goalkeeper Alisson Becker try to equalize.
Szoboszlai pulled Haaland and as the ball crossed the line Haaland pulled the Hungarian captain back.
After a VAR check, referee Craig Pawson ruled that Haaland had not been given a scoring opportunity and ruled the goal out, awarding a free kick 30 yards out and sending off Szoboszlai.
Szoboszlai’s superb free-kick with six minutes left looked to have given leaders Arsenal a huge advantage, but the title race looked all but over.
However, Bernardo Silva used Alisson’s foot to volley home Haaland, who then brought down Matheus Nunez and Haaland cut the Gunners’ lead to six points again.
Liverpool were often unable to protect their lead and took the lead again in the 74th minute thanks to Szoboszlai’s 30-yard strike.
Facing a wall of just two men, the midfielder-turned-right-back turned away and fired a shot straight into the middle, leaving 6ft 5in Gianluigi Donnarumma rooted to the spot.
Szoboszlai scored a similar goal against the Gunners in August and appears to be doing his best to prepare for the big moment.
But that was when Arne Slott’s team was still basking in the glory of being defending champions, and that confidence has since evaporated.
Bernardo Silva’s first league goal of the season gave City plenty of encouragement and Haaland stepped up when it mattered most as Alisson brought down Nunez.
Until then, they had been denied twice by Alisson in the first half and there was no sign of an end to their drought, but this created an atmosphere in which the visitors dominated without posing too much of a threat, and the home side defended with a resilience that has been rare this season.
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City’s possession was met with the loudest boos, with Marc Guehi likely to have worn red had the final day of the summer transfer window played out differently.
Despite dominating the territory, Guardiola’s side produced few goals and Liverpool hit back with a Mohamed Salah shot deflected wide by Guehi and a shot into the roof of the net after Donnarumma flicked in Szoboszlai’s cross.
Bernardo Silva’s hand on Salah’s shoulder inside the penalty area gave City a brief moment of anxiety, and their confidence appeared to be waning in the second half.
Florian Wirths, who had been absent from the game for a while, had more opportunities to see the ball, but in the 52nd minute it was the improvised right-back Szoboszlai who had the first shot on target, and Hugo Ekitike bent it wide and headed it wide of the target when he should have scored.
City lost Abdukkodir Kusanov to a concussion at the hands of their own goalkeeper, but attention shifted to central defensive partner Guehi, who was booked for pulling Salah back in front of the area after deflecting Wirtz’s goal-bound shot behind him.
Salah took a free kick into the Kop, but Szoboszlai immediately told him what to do.
It was a worthy winner, but Bernardo Silva and Haaland had other ideas.
