After the latest thrilling instalment in their epic rivalry, the hope is that Manchester City and Liverpool can meet again in the biggest club game of all.
City and Liverpool will resume their rivalry at Wembley on Saturday in the FA Cup semi-final, although the personnel on both sides is likely to change from Sunday's pulsating 2-2 draw at the Etihad Stadium. But with Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp's sides serving up football on such an exalted level, and with both sides on opposite sides of the Champions League draw, there remains the tantalising prospect of both meeting in the final in Paris on May 28.
While Liverpool's place in the semi-finals is all but assured, with a 3-1 lead over Benfica heading into Wednesday's return leg at Anfield, City's path to the last four carries far more jeopardy. Guardiola's side take a 1-0 lead to Spanish champions Atletico Madrid, knowing they will have to be at their very best and show their formidable mental resolve if they are to advance to a likely semi-final showdown with Real Madrid.
Liverpool are likely to have to navigate their way past German champions Bayern Munich in the other semi-final if European club football's showpiece game is to be afforded the final between arguably the two best sides on the continent. City against Liverpool has undoubtedly replaced El Clasico, between Barcelona and Real Madrid, as the premier fixture in European football.
No other side in the Premier League, possibly Europe, can match the breathtaking quality produced by Guardiola and Klopp's sides, who never fail to deliver on the entertainment front when they meet. Klopp described Sunday's pulsating encounter as being like a boxing match between two heavyweights, with both sides trading blow after blow, although with neither ultimately able to land the knockout punch to secure victory.
With seven games to go in the title race, there is every chance both will win them all, such is the formidable standard they have set, meaning City will pip Liverpool to the title by a solitary point, just as they did in 2018-19, when they had to end the season with 14 successive wins to come out on top.
City versus Liverpool may lack the animosity and edge of Manchester United and Arsenal's rivalry, the mutual love-in between Guardiola and Klopp a world away from the digs and disdain between arch enemies Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger, when they slugged it out for the title.
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But the quality of the football between the two sides more than makes up for the lack of outright hostility between the two coaches and sets of players. City ended Sunday's game with the feeling of an opportunity missed to put one hand on the Premier League trophy, given they were the dominant team, but were ultimately unable to break Liverpool's impressive resistance.
Reflecting on the game, City's man-of-the-match Kevin De Bruyne said: “We deserved to win, but in the end we'll take it. It's very easy to say 'win all the games', but I never thought that whoever won this game would be the one that wins the title.
“The schedule is so hard for both clubs, the games come thick and fast, and the quality of the Premier League is so high, it's going to be a massive challenge. If a team comes here to play, it's always a good game and Liverpool came here to play the way they play, so that's why it's always been good.”
City and Liverpool are likely to share all of the domestic silverware available between them this season. What a treat it would be for the football world if they were to meet for the fourth time this season in Paris in 47 days' time, to decide the biggest club prize of all.
