Liverpool v Man City drama live: late twist shakes Premier League race

Liverpool and Man City serve up a wild finish as Haaland and Salah trade blows – but one late decision leaves everyone raging. Did the title race just flip?

Kick-off! As of today, 2026-02-22, the pitch is on fire... You wanted football results today? Buckle up. The Premier League live action at Anfield has just ripped the title race wide open as Liverpool 2–2 Manchester City delivered chaos, controversy and a finish that’s going to dominate soccer news all night.

From Erling Haaland smashing in yet another ruthless opener to Mohamed Salah dragging Liverpool back into it, this one had everything: top scorers today doing exactly what they do, a VAR storm, and a late equaliser that felt like a last?minute winner for the Kop.

Fireworks at Anfield: Liverpool 2–2 Man City

This was billed as the game of the season, and it lived up to every bit of hype.

Manchester City struck first. On 18 minutes, Kevin De Bruyne slid a filthy reverse pass into the box, and Erling Haaland did what he does: one touch out of his feet, second touch a low rocket into the bottom corner. Alisson barely saw it. City 1–0, Haaland on the scoresheet again, and you could feel every defender in the league sighing.

Liverpool were rattled, but not for long. The response came from the main man. In the 33rd minute, Trent Alexander-Arnold whipped in a teasing cross, Darwin Núñez crashed a header off the bar, and Mohamed Salah pounced on the rebound, smashing home from close range. Anfield erupted. Salah, once again, right at the heart of the Football results today headlines.

The game went end to end. De Bruyne and Bernardo Silva started to pull strings; for Liverpool, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai snapped into tackles and tried to turn over possession high. Haaland had another half-chance just before the break, a glancing header that skimmed past the post.

Second-half chaos: penalties, VAR and a late sting

After the break, the intensity somehow went up a level. On 56 minutes, Liverpool broke through Núñez. He charged into the box and went down under contact from Ruben Dias. The referee pointed to the spot instantly. VAR checked it for what felt like forever, but the decision stood. Up stepped Mohamed Salah, cool as ice, sending Ederson the wrong way to make it 2–1 Liverpool and put him into the day's top scorers list.

Then came the controversy that lit up the timeline. In the 74th minute, City thought they had equalised. De Bruyne swung in a corner, Haaland rose highest, Alisson parried, and Phil Foden slammed the loose ball into the net. City players wheeled away, but VAR drew the dreaded lines. Haaland’s shoulder was judged just offside in the initial header. Goal ruled out. Anfield celebrated like they’d scored a third; Pep Guardiola looked like he wanted to melt the monitor.

But City don’t go away. Deep into the 88th minute, substitute Julian Álvarez threaded a ball into the left channel, Jeremy Doku cut inside and unleashed a shot that deflected off Virgil van Dijk. Alisson was wrong-footed, and the ball trickled agonisingly into the far corner. Officially, it goes down as a Jeremy Doku goal, and it felt like a punch to the gut for Liverpool. 2–2, game level, title race pure chaos.

Stars under the spotlight: heroes and flops

• Erling Haaland: One big chance, one ruthless finish. Classic Haaland. He bullied Liverpool's backline early, even if he faded a bit once van Dijk tightened up.
• Mohamed Salah: Two huge goals – a poacher's instinct for the first and ice-cold from the spot for the second. Every time this fixture needs a moment, Salah delivers. Absolute world-class performance.
• Kevin De Bruyne: Not on the scoresheet, but his assist for Haaland and his overall orchestration in midfield were vintage KDB. The way he drifts into half-spaces and slices open defenses is unreal.
• Virgil van Dijk: Dominant in the air and calm on the ball, but he’ll hate that late deflection off him for Doku’s goal. Hard to call him a flop, but that moment will sting.
• Alisson: Huge saves throughout the game, especially low stops from Haaland and Álvarez, but completely undone by the wicked late deflection. Still, he kept Liverpool alive when City pushed.

Elsewhere in the Premier League: title rivals and top-four chasers

While Anfield stole all the noise, the rest of the Premier League live schedule kept the drama rolling for football results today.

At the Emirates, Arsenal 3–1 Newcastle United turned into the Bukayo Saka show. After Gabriel Jesus opened the scoring with a sharp finish from a tight angle, Saka took over. Cutting inside from the right, he curled a gorgeous left?footed shot into the far corner for Arsenal's second. In the second half, a slick move ended with Martin Ødegaard sliding Saka in again; this time he went low across the keeper for his brace. Newcastle’s late consolation came from Alexander Isak, who calmly slotted past Ramsdale after a through ball from Bruno Guimarães.

Down in London, Chelsea 1–1 Tottenham was all about missed chances. Son Heung-min gave Spurs the lead with a smart near?post finish from a Dejan Kulusevski cross, but Chelsea hit back when Cole Palmer buried a penalty after Raheem Sterling was tripped in the box. Enzo Fernández rattled the bar from distance, and Son had a late chance saved – so both sides had to settle for a draw that does little for their push up the football league table.

What this does to the Premier League table

That 2–2 at Anfield is massive. Instead of one of Liverpool or City breaking away, they’ve basically tripped each other up – and suddenly Arsenal’s win over Newcastle feels absolutely huge for the title race. The gap at the top tightens, the pressure mounts on every single point, and next weekend already looks like a mini final.

What does this mean for the title race? Click here for the live standings

Social Media Spotlight: VAR rage and highlight heaven

As soon as VAR chalked off Phil Foden’s strike and Doku’s late equaliser went in, the timelines exploded. Fans of both sides are split right down the middle – some screaming that the offside lines are a joke, others insisting it was technically correct. Meanwhile, clips of Salah’s penalty and Haaland’s finish are already doing millions of views.

My take: title race on a knife edge

In my opinion, this feels like a missed chance for both sides, but emotionally it hits Liverpool harder. You're 2–1 up at home with the Kop roaring, Salah on a brace, and City wobbling – you have to see that out. The defending for Doku’s goal wasn’t disastrous, but allowing him to cut inside that easily that late is brutal.

For City, this is exactly why they scare everyone. Even when they're not at their slick, peak Guardiola best, they hang around, they press, they move the ball, and suddenly a deflection rescues a point. Haaland and De Bruyne didn’t absolutely dominate across 90 minutes, but they still produced the key moments. That's title-winning DNA.

Tactically, I think Liverpool's high-energy press paid off early, but once tired legs kicked in, City's rotations between De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Álvarez started to carve out more gaps. If anything, this game shouts one thing: get used to this, because the run-in is going to be outrageous.

Closing whistle: stay locked in

So, today's Football results today gave us exactly what we wanted – big names on the scoresheet, a title showdown dripping with drama, and a league table that looks tighter than ever. Salah and Haaland both delivered, the VAR drama will be replayed for days, and Arsenal quietly slide right into the conversation.

If you're trying to make sense of all this chaos – the top scorers today, the football league table swings, and who's really on track to lift the trophy – the numbers tell their own story.

Check full stats & standings now

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