Liverpool vs Man City live drama: Anfield roar, title race shaking tonight
21.02.2026 - 09:55:01 | ad-hoc-news.de
Liverpool 3-2 Manchester City – Salah the sniper, Haaland silenced
This one felt like a Champions League night. Manchester City struck first, Liverpool hit back, and the final 20 minutes were pure panic for both sets of fans.
City opened the scoring after a slick move. Kevin De Bruyne slipped a filthy through ball into the left channel, Phil Foden cut it back, and Erling Haaland did what Haaland usually does – one touch, low finish, 0-1. Simple, ruthless, and Anfield went dead quiet for a second.
Liverpool needed a response, and they found it through their captain. On 31 minutes, Mohamed Salah pinned Josko Gvardiol, rolled him, and combined with Darwin Núñez on the edge. The ball bounced kindly and Salah whipped a right-foot curler into the far corner. 1-1, and suddenly the whole stadium erupted like it was plugged into a power socket.
Just before half-time, Liverpool flipped the script. From a corner, Trent Alexander-Arnold's delivery caused chaos. City failed to clear, and Virgil van Dijk rose above everyone to thump a header past Ederson. 2-1 Liverpool, and the belief inside Anfield felt almost physical.
City, though, are never dead. After the restart, they pushed higher and higher. De Bruyne kept trying to drag them back into it, and on 63 minutes he did exactly that: he ghosted into space, Foden found him, and KDB smashed a left-footed strike from the edge of the box into the bottom corner. Alisson got fingers to it, but no chance. 2-2. Title race… wide open again.
Then came the turning point – and the big social media meltdown moment. In the 79th minute, Núñez spun in behind and went down in the box under contact from Rúben Dias. The referee pointed to the spot instantly. VAR checked it for what felt like a lifetime. Replays showed slight contact, Núñez definitely made the most of it. Still, the decision stood. Cue outrage from City fans and pure limbs from the Kop.
Up stepped Mohamed Salah again. Ice cold. Low to Ederson's right, just inside the post. 3-2 Liverpool, Salah brace, and Anfield absolutely shaking. It wasn’t just a penalty, it was a statement: title race, we are here.
Haaland vs Salah: hero vs almost invisible
For once, Erling Haaland wasn’t the main character. Yes, he scored that early opener, but after that he was smothered. Van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté bullied him aerially, cut off his runs, and every cross into the box felt like it was swallowed by Van Dijk’s head. In the second half, Haaland barely had a clean sight of goal. For a player hunting the top scorers today charts every week, he faded badly when City needed him most.
Mohamed Salah, on the other hand, played like a man who refuses to let this title race go. Two goals, relentless runs, constant menace. He chased back, he linked play, he dragged Liverpool forward whenever City tried to pin them in. If we’re talking Player of the Season, tonight is one of those nights that sits on the highlight reel.
Other big names? Kevin De Bruyne was pure class on the ball, but he also looked exhausted late on, misplacing simple passes he normally nails in his sleep. Phil Foden was sharp between the lines early, then disappeared as Liverpool’s midfield tightened up. For Liverpool, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai absolutely emptied the tank, snapping into tackles and turning defence into attack in seconds.
Title race shockwaves – where does this leave the league table?
This win doesn’t just give Liverpool three points, it flips the whole football league table picture. City had a chance to go clear at the top; instead, they’re now chasing. Liverpool move above them and crank up the pressure on every single game left in the season.
With Arsenal and maybe even a resurgent Spurs hovering around, the Premier League feels like a mini Champions League knockout phase every weekend. One slip, one dodgy VAR call, and the entire narrative changes. Tonight, that penalty call for Núñez might be what everyone’s arguing about, but on the standings page it’s simply another three points – and that’s what will matter in May.
What does this mean for the title race? Click here for the live standings
Elsewhere in Europe – quick-fire roundup
While Anfield was rocking, the rest of Europe had its own chaos. In La Liga, Real Madrid scraped a 2-1 win away from home thanks to a late header from Jude Bellingham after Vinícius Júnior opened the scoring. Bellingham wasn’t vintage for 90 minutes, but when it mattered, he was there again – classic clutch player energy.
In Ligue 1, Paris Saint-Germain cruised with a 3-0 win, and of course Kylian Mbappé got on the sheet with a ruthless counter-attack finish. Add in an assist and you’ve got another game where he looks like he’s playing career mode on beginner difficulty while everyone else is on legendary.
And in the background of all this domestic madness, Champions League news is bubbling: managers are already rotating line-ups with one eye on midweek, and tonight’s big performances from Salah, Bellingham and Mbappé are exactly the kind of form you want going into knockout rounds.
The Internet is Exploding: 3 Social Media Highlights
X Discussion: Fans furious over that late VAR penalty for Núñez
My take: this felt like a power shift
Look, in my opinion, this was more than just another Premier League match report – this was a psychological punch. Liverpool didn’t just beat City; they out-fought them, out-ran them, and looked like the team that wanted the title more in the final 20 minutes.
Pep Guardiola is going to be fuming about that penalty call, but he also has to look at how passive his side were once it went to 2-2. City played like they were afraid to lose; Liverpool played like they refused to do anything except win. That’s a massive difference at this stage of the season.
If you’re City, you can’t depend on Haaland bailing you out every single week. When he’s even slightly off, they need someone else to grab the game – today, nobody really did. De Bruyne tried, but the rest? Too flat, too safe.
For Liverpool, this is the kind of night that builds belief in the dressing room. Salah looking elite, Van Dijk back to brick-wall mode, the crowd fully locked in – it all screams "+1 gear" when the pressure ramps up. If they keep this level, they’re absolutely in the mix all the way.
Closing whistle: buckle up, this run-in is going to be chaos
So where does this leave us? The top of the Premier League is tighter, the top scorers today list keeps getting fresh ink with Salah’s name on it, and social feeds are still flooding with replays of that controversial VAR moment.
If you’re into soccer news, this is the point of the season where every single match feels like a cup final. Managers will rotate, stars will rise or flop, and we’ll keep tracking every twist as it hits.
Check full stats & standings now
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