Premier League chaos live: Liverpool stun City as Haaland blanks at Anfield

Liverpool edge Man City in a wild Anfield showdown as Haaland misfires, Salah delivers and the title race explodes. Full drama, goals, and table twist inside.

Kick-off! As of today, 2026-02-28, the pitch is on fire... If you were hunting for the biggest football results today, you absolutely landed on the right page. Anfield just gave us a Premier League epic: Liverpool 2–1 Manchester City, a game that blew the title race wide open and left some superstars looking human for once.

From the first whistle this felt different – tackles flying in, the Kop roaring, and every touch from the big names under the microscope. Forget calm, this was chaos in 4K.

Liverpool 2–1 Manchester City – Salah clutch, Haaland quiet

Liverpool came out like they were on fast-forward. The opener? Pure mayhem. In the 18th minute, a sharp move down the right saw Trent Alexander-Arnold clip a wicked ball into the box. Darwin Núñez bullied his marker, cushioned it down, and Mohamed Salah pounced – low left-foot finish, 1–0. Anfield exploded. Salah, again the man for the big stage.

City, though, are never dead. Around the half-hour mark, they finally clicked. Kevin De Bruyne, doing De Bruyne things, drifted into the right half-space and whipped in one of those disgusting teasing crosses. Phil Foden ghosted between the centre-backs and nodded in for 1–1. Clinical. One chance, one goal. Game back on.

All eyes, of course, were glued to Erling Haaland. But this was not his night. He had a massive chance just before half-time – slipped through by Bernardo Silva, one-on-one with Alisson. You’d normally bet your house on Haaland there, but his shot was too close to the keeper, Alisson spread big and saved with his legs. The Kop reacted like they’d scored.

The second half was pure drama. Liverpool upped the tempo again, with Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister snapping into tackles and driving the ball forward. The winner came in the 73rd minute, and it was all about chaos in the City box. A corner was half-cleared, the ball recycled wide to Andy Robertson, who fizzed in a low cross. Núñez made a near-post run, the ball ricocheted off a defender, and Diogo Jota reacted quickest at the back stick to slam it home. 2–1 Liverpool, Anfield shaking.

From there it became survival mode for Liverpool. City threw everything at it – De Bruyne pulling strings, Foden cutting inside, even Rúben Dias staying up as an emergency striker in the final minutes. The moment everyone will be arguing about tonight? A huge VAR check in stoppage time. Haaland battled with Virgil van Dijk in the box, went down, City screamed for a penalty. The ref waved play on, VAR had a long look… and stuck with the on-field decision. No penalty. The City bench lost it, Pep Guardiola raging on the touchline. Social media? Melting.

Haaland’s final numbers tell the story: tons of running, always a threat, but no goal. On a night when he was expected to dominate, he ended up in the shadow of Salah’s composure and Jota’s killer instinct. The Norwegian superstar will know he left points on the table here.

Title race twist – Liverpool back in the thick of it

This result changes everything at the top. City drop crucial points, Liverpool surge right back into the conversation, and the pressure just cranked up on every side chasing the crown. Those tiny margins – Haaland’s miss, the denied penalty, Jota’s sharp reaction – could be what we look back on in May.

What does this mean for the title race? The gap at the top tightens, momentum swings red, and suddenly every fixture feels like a cup final. Click here for the live standings

Big names report card – Heroes & flops

• Mohamed Salah – Big-game merchant. One cool finish, constant danger cutting in from the right, linked play, tracked back when needed. Absolute leader’s performance.
• Diogo Jota – Right place, right time, right finish. That winner was all about sharp instincts. Never stopped moving, always sniffing for loose balls.
• Darwin Núñez – Chaos factor on legs. Didn’t score, but bullied defenders, contested every aerial ball, and was crucial in the build-up to Salah’s opener.
• Erling Haaland – Rare off night. Got into positions, but the finishing radar was off. That big first-half miss will haunt him, and the late penalty shout will dominate the debate.
• Kevin De Bruyne – Class as always. One superb assist for Foden, dictated phases of play, but even his magic couldn’t drag City to a result this time.
• Phil Foden – Took his goal beautifully and kept trying to make things happen. Probably City’s brightest attacker.

Social Media Spotlight – VAR, Haaland & Anfield noise

The online reaction is absolutely wild. The main talking point? That stoppage-time VAR decision on Haaland vs Van Dijk. Half the internet is screaming penalty, the other half is shouting “soft!” and posting slow-mo clips on repeat.

My take: Statement win, statement questions

In my opinion, this was a statement win from Liverpool. Not just because of the scoreline, but because of how they matched City physically and mentally. They pressed like crazy, refused to drop their tempo, and every time City looked like they might grab control, someone in red made a massive play – a tackle, a block, a run.

On the flip side, City looked… rattled. Not broken, not terrible, just rattled. When Haaland isn’t firing, you suddenly see how much City lean on his ruthlessness in front of goal. De Bruyne and Foden did their part, but without the usual Haaland knockout punch, Liverpool were able to hang in there and then land their own.

Manager-wise? No one’s getting sacked off this, obviously, but Pep is going to be fuming about that VAR call and the lack of killer instinct. Meanwhile, Liverpool’s manager walks away looking like the architect of a massive turning point in the season – brave selection, brave pressing, brave substitutions. It all paid off.

Closing whistle – Title race on a knife-edge

If this is a preview of the run-in, clear your weekends. The energy, the pressure, the emotion – it all went up a level tonight. Liverpool send a message, City get a warning, and the rest of the league suddenly believe that the champions are not untouchable.

For all the football results today, this one is the headliner, the result everyone will build their arguments around. Momentum matters, belief matters, and tonight Liverpool grabbed both.

Check full stats & standings now

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