Liverpool vs Manchester City – News and Probable Lineups

After a shocking guilty verdict, Manchester City’s dramatic return to the Premier League occurs this Sunday when the league leaders face a motivated Liverpool team at Anfield.

Enzo Maresca’s squad is currently the only team in the Premier League this season with a flawless record after five matches in 2026-27, but their recent achievements have been overshadowed by the earth-shattering news that rocked the football world during the international break.

Match overview

While Maresca seems confident, his team is likely to face hostility from numerous rival supporters, following an independent commission’s ruling that found Manchester City guilty of almost all of the 115 charges made against them by the Premier League over the past three and a half years.

The allegations included creating ‘sham’ contracts to conceal actual financial data and allegedly refusing to assist with official inquiries, making the ruling against Manchester City a significant incident in English football; however, the club has firmly denied any wrongdoing and filed an appeal.

Jose Mourinho humorously suggested he could be 80 by the time the matter is fully resolved, but the appeal process must conclude within 12 weeks, during which Maresca’s squad can only concentrate on their performances on the pitch.

Since their Community Shield loss to Arsenal, the Citizens have been nearly flawless in their execution, securing victories in their first five Premier League matches with an aggregate score of 13-5, while also beginning their Champions League and EFL Cup campaigns successfully.

Prior to the international break, Manchester City narrowly overcame Sunderland 5-3, relying on Brian Brobbey’s hat-trick, but the visitors are expected to encounter the most intense atmosphere at Anfield in a long time.

Having finished as runners-up during the thrilling 2013-14 Premier League season – right in the midst of Manchester City’s alleged misconduct period from 2009 to 2018 – Liverpool and their devoted supporters will be driven by a profound sense of injustice during this weekend’s fixture.

The Reds never require additional encouragement to deliver a standout performance against the Sky Blues, and Andoni Iraola’s team can anticipate fervent backing from rival fans across the nation this weekend, as will any team facing Manchester City in the upcoming months.

While Liverpool has not yet matched Manchester City’s perfect Premier League record in the 2026-27 season, the home side remains unbeaten, claiming two wins and three draws, most recently squeezing out a 1-0 win against a lackluster Bournemouth to rise to sixth in the table.

Mirroring Manchester City’s triumphs in the Champions League and EFL Cup, the Reds have triumphed in four of their last five matches across all competitions, netting eight goals while conceding just one during that stretch.

Nevertheless, Arne Slot’s Liverpool was defeated in all three encounters against Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City during the 2025-26 season, but this will mark the first clash between the Reds and Sky Blues since 2015 without Jurgen Klopp or Guardiola at the helm, making the context potentially more significant than the final scoreline.

Team News

What Manchester City fans didn’t want to hear during the international break was that Erling Haaland sustained an injury scare, when he appeared to limp off while playing for Norway against Portugal.

Fortunately, there seem to be no serious concerns regarding Haaland’s fitness ahead of the trip to Merseyside, as Maresca confirmed in his pre-match press conference, amidst numerous questions regarding the charges.

No updates were provided concerning Nico O’Reilly (knock) or Antoine Semenyo (ankle), although neither is thought to be dealing with a serious issue, while Phil Foden completes his three-match domestic suspension.

Both Manchester City and Liverpool experienced scares involving their Scandinavian forwards during the break, as Alexander Isak withdrew from the Sweden squad due to a thigh injury and has been ruled out of this match.

Cody Gakpo (ankle) finds himself in the same situation, and with Hugo Ekitike (Achilles) also unavailable for the next few weeks, Iraola may need to utilize Bradley Barcola as his offensive focal point.

Jeremy Jacquet (thigh) and Federico Chiesa (back) are in better condition, as the former has been cleared fit while the latter has resumed training, but Conor Bradley (knee) and Giovanni Leoni (knee) will both remain on the sidelines.

Liverpool probable starting XI:

Alisson; Araujo, Jacquet, Van Dijk, Kerkez; Mac Allister, Szoboszlai; Ngumoha, Wirtz, Munoz; Barcola

Manchester City probable starting XI:

Dressing room; Nunes, Guehi, Dias, Gvardiol; Fernandez, Anderson; Grandma, Cherki, Doku; Haaland

Liverpool x Manchester City fixtures have always been challenging to forecast, especially now given the ramifications of the Sky Blues’ remarkable recent past, but Maresca witnessed several of his players – particularly Nico O’Reilly and Marc Guehi – commit uncharacteristic errors during the international break, possibly influenced by their current situation.

Even though the Reds lack a conventional striker, Iraola’s team should draw energy from the charged Anfield atmosphere and are expected to penetrate the City defense repeatedly, but that may not suffice to prevent a reinvigorated Citizens team from securing at least a draw.