Liverpool's Cody Gakpo celebrates scoring their first goal with Mohamed Salah and other teammates. — Reuters
Liverpool established a commanding nine-point lead at the summit of the Premier League as Manchester City's woes deepened with a 2-0 loss at Anfield on Sunday. Cody Gakpo's 12th-minute strike was a mere consolation for the Reds' dominant first-half performance, and they secured their 18th victory in 20 games under Arne Slot thanks to Mohamed Salah's penalty. City now trail the runaway leaders by 11 points, languishing in fifth place and winless in their last seven matches, including six defeats. Arsenal and Chelsea are Liverpool's closest pursuers, as City seem poised to relinquish their English championship title after an unprecedented four consecutive wins. City's solitary point since October 26 felt like a defeat, as they squandered a 3-0 lead in the final 15 minutes to draw 3-3 with Feyenoord in the Champions League midweek. Pep Guardiola responded by benching goalkeeper Ederson, while Kyle Walker and Ruben Dias were reinstated to the defense. However, the defending champions were overwhelmed in the opening stages. Stefan Ortega made crucial saves from Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai before Virgil van Dijk's header struck the post. City struggled to advance beyond their half in the initial quarter, and Gakpo capitalized on Salah's cross to score. Van Dijk narrowly missed another header as Liverpool continued to create opportunities. Even during City's peak under Guardiola, they have found it challenging to withstand the Anfield crowd's energy. City's sole away victory against Liverpool since 2003 occurred behind closed doors during the 2021/22 season affected by the coronavirus. Guardiola's team managed to stabilize somewhat towards the end of the first half, with Rico Lewis's attempt just missing the goal. City began the second half more assertively but should have conceded multiple times on the counter-attack. Ortega blocked Gakpo's attempt after a superb pass from Andy Robertson, and Salah missed a one-on-one opportunity. A turnover deep in their half led to the decisive second goal. Luis Diaz dispossessed Walker and advanced before being fouled by Ortega. Salah converted the penalty for his 13th goal of the season, concluding Liverpool's triumphant week. Guardiola introduced Jeremy Doku, Savinho, Jack Grealish, and Kevin De Bruyne as substitutes in the second half, but City's reliance on Erling Haaland for goals was apparent. Haaland was effectively marked out of the game by Van Dijk, who had an otherwise stellar performance. Guardiola faced chants of 'you're getting sacked in the morning' in the closing stages. The City boss responded by displaying six fingers, symbolizing his six Premier League title wins in the past seven seasons. However, both Guardiola and his team are reminiscing about past glories, as Liverpool appear uncatchable for City this season.
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