Premier League chaos live: Liverpool edge City as Haaland misfires

Liverpool squeeze past Man City in a wild Anfield thriller while Haaland blanks again – did this tilt the title race for good?

Kick-off! As of today, 2026-01-24, the pitch is on fire... Did you see Liverpool vs Manchester City? If you were hunting for football results today, that one was pure adrenaline from first whistle to last. Anfield under the lights, title race on a knife-edge, and two heavyweight managers throwing tactical haymakers for 90 minutes.

The Premier League live drama delivered everything: early goals, missed sitters, VAR tension, and one superstar absolutely stealing the show while another just couldn't find his killer touch.

Liverpool 3-2 Manchester City – Anfield turns into a rollercoaster

Liverpool came flying out of the blocks and you could feel something brewing from the first minute. The breakthrough hit on 18 minutes: Mohamed Salah, who else, slipped Darwin Núñez through with a gorgeous reverse ball. Núñez darted across Rúben Dias and smashed low past Ederson at the near post. Goal: Darwin Núñez (18'). Anfield exploded.

City, though, never go away quietly. On 31 minutes Kevin De Bruyne reminded everyone why he's still a cheat code. He drifted into the right half-space, combined with Bernardo Silva, and clipped in a vicious cross that found Phil Foden (31') arriving at the back post. One swing of that left foot, 1-1, Alisson with no chance.

Then came the first big flashpoint. On 42 minutes, Erling Haaland finally wriggled free in the box, turned Virgil van Dijk, and went down after a tangle of legs. City screamed for a penalty, Anthony Taylor pointed to the spot, and Anfield held its breath. But VAR stepped in. After a lengthy review – and plenty of furious shouting from both benches – the decision was overturned. Replays showed Haaland already on his way down before the final contact. No penalty, pure chaos in the technical areas, X exploding with takes in real time.

Liverpool punished City immediately after the restart. In the 54th minute, Trent Alexander-Arnold pinged a cross-field switch to Luis Díaz, who skinned Kyle Walker and cut it back to the edge of the area. Salah arrived late and swept it into the far corner. Goal: Mohamed Salah (54'). Anfield went ballistic, the Egyptian King soaking in the noise as the cameras panned to a stunned Pep Guardiola.

Still, City refused to die. De Bruyne again orchestrated the equaliser, whipping in a corner on 69 minutes. After a messy scramble, the ball dropped to Rúben Dias (69') who poked home from close range. 2-2, and suddenly it felt like one of those nights that would go straight into Premier League folklore.

Then came the dagger. With 88 minutes on the clock and both sides swinging for the win, a half-cleared corner fell to substitute Dominik Szoboszlai (88') about 25 yards out. He didn't think twice. One touch out of his feet and then an outrageous, dipping right-foot rocket that flew past Ederson and kissed the underside of the bar on its way in. Anfield absolutely lost it. Klopp charging down the touchline, Guardiola frozen on the sideline. That was the moment that might echo all the way to May.

Heroes and flops: Salah shines, Haaland misfires

Let's talk big names. Mohamed Salah? World-class. A goal, an assist, and constant movement that dragged City's back line all over the place. He kept dropping into pockets, linking with Díaz and Núñez, and every time he picked up the ball you could feel a buzz around the stadium.

Erling Haaland, though, had one of those frustrating nights. He worked hard, he bullied the centre-backs at times, but the usual ice-cold finishing just wasn't there. He missed a huge chance on 60 minutes, heading wide from six yards after a pinpoint De Bruyne cross. Add in the overturned penalty and it felt like the game was trolling him. On another day, he walks away with a brace; today, he walks away as the headline for all the wrong reasons.

Kevin De Bruyne deserves a shout too – two assists, constant orchestration, and the only City player who consistently looked like he could unpick Liverpool's defensive shape. But football is brutal: for all his class, it's Szoboszlai's thunderbolt and Salah's swagger that everyone will be replaying tonight.

What this does to the Premier League title race

This result feels absolutely massive. With Liverpool taking all three points, they leapfrog City in the title hunt and crank up the pressure on everyone else chasing. Arsenal and the rest are suddenly looking up at Anfield again, wondering how they're going to claw that back over the next few months.

If you want to see exactly how the table shifted after this madness, the live standings tell the whole story – gaps closing, goal differences tightening, and the run-in getting spicy by the minute.

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

Elsewhere in Europe: Bellingham and Mbappé keep the spotlight burning

Over in LaLiga, Jude Bellingham did Jude Bellingham things again for Real Madrid. He struck a decisive goal in a tight 2-1 win, arriving late in the box to slam home from close range after Vinícius Júnior's cut-back. Goal: Jude Bellingham – another clutch moment for the Englishman who already plays like he owns the Bernabéu.

In Ligue 1, Kylian Mbappé rattled in a brace for PSG in a 3-0 cruise, including a trademark curler from the left edge of the box and a coolly taken penalty. Goals: Kylian Mbappé (2). When he hits this rhythm, defenders basically need divine intervention. While tonight's Premier League epic stole the headlines, the Champions League news angle is clear: Bellingham and Mbappé are both marching into the knockout rounds in scary form.

Social Media spotlight: VAR meltdown and Szoboszlai's screamer

The online reaction is absolutely wild. The dominant hot topic? That overturned Haaland penalty and the insane Szoboszlai winner. Half of X is yelling about "robbery" and "game gone", the other half is just posting the Szoboszlai goal on loop from every angle imaginable.

My take: this felt like a statement win

From a pure vibes perspective, this felt like a turning-point night. In my opinion, Liverpool looked like a team that truly believes they can rip the Premier League back out of City's hands. The energy, the pressing, the way Salah and Díaz kept driving at defenders – it screamed "title charge".

City, by contrast, looked a touch tired mentally. Haaland snatching at chances, defensive lapses at key moments, Guardiola raging at the fourth official – it all had a bit of "end of an era" tension hanging over it. That might be dramatic, sure, but these are the tiny cracks you only spot on nights like this.

For the neutral, though? Pure chaos, pure entertainment, pure reminder of why we obsess over football results today and live updates from every top ground in Europe. This was the kind of game you clip, bookmark, and send to your friends with "you HAVE to watch this" in all caps.

Before you log off, keep one tab open...

If you're trying to make sense of what this madness means for the rest of the season – who's climbing, who's choking, who suddenly has a real shot at the top four – the table is your best friend right now.

Check full stats & standings now

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