Liverpool welcoming Manchester City to Anfield has been the fixture that has defined the Premier League for most of the last decade. Pep Guardiola's dominant force often rolled in to Merseyside and found troubles, but prevailed in the long-run. This weekend carried a different narrative and one which spelled out City's destruction if it wasn't careful.
Not quite win or bust, but just don't lose. This was a team that had lost five of its last six games in all competitions, had been humbled by Tottenham at home eight days earlier, and given up three goals in 15 minutes to only draw last time out in the Champions League. This is as tough as Guardiola has found it at City and upon him is a time where he must answer questions he's never had to answer before. Liverpool away was the chance to fix it. City didn't.
Liverpool's victory was the headline act of the English league weekend, but there are plenty of conclusions to be drawn from elsewhere too. Here's what we learned from around the grounds.
Manchester City Eliminated From the Title Race, Barring a Miracle
Who'd have thought? Manchester City out of the Premier League title race by the start of December? Impossible. Improbable. Reality?
The trip to Anfield was a match City could not lose but based on recent form and favor, were always likely to. In the end Arne Slot's Liverpool steamrollered its way over City and were in no mood to forgive its chief tormentor's recent drop off. This was Liverpool's opportunity to underline its incredible start to the season with a second statement win in a matter of days, and it delivered. European champions Real Madrid and now the Premier League holders have fallen in the cauldron.
All Pep Guardiola could find as an answer were six digits. A fun response to "you're getting sacked in the morning" chants from the home support, or a mirror of the behavior of long-time rival José Mourinho when he started on the road to becoming yesterday's man? Harsh and short-sighted perhaps but it's certainly a context some could strip away.
All Guardiola knows, everything that has worked for him, the football he has blessed the world with and used to sweep up every trophy possible... it isn't standing up. City has a midweek fixture against Nottingham Forest approaching as it looks to arrest a winless run but nothing in this team at the moment inspires confidence that it is able to find the form that has powered it over the line before.
It's now seven straight matches without a win, six of which defeats, and City now trail the league leaders by 11 points. A marker has quite clearly been set, City are no longer the team to beat, and instead might have to start looking over their shoulder in a race to qualify for the Champions League, which was unthinkable six weeks ago.
It's Liverpool's to Lose... and Nobody's Lost It From Here
Twenty matches in all competitions, 18 wins. It's an incredible start for Slot and one which nobody could've predicted. The criticisms of "Liverpool haven't beaten anybody yet" has been truly put aside since Wednesday night.
So good a start it's been that after 13 Premier League fixtures, Liverpool have entered territory of immortals. Only two teams have held nine point-plus advantages in the table at this point in a season, Manchester United in 1993-94 and Chelsea in 2005-06, and both of those teams went on to lift the trophy come May.
There won't be many saying this is wrapped up yet, there's two thirds of the season to go and the teams directly below Liverpool are hitting form, but it's testament to the start Slot has made that the team has reached this point so quickly. Finding tactical tweaks to get the best out of players who were once sideshows, Luis Diaz to center forward and Ryan Gravenberch's step up in midfield, evidence how Slot hasn't changed too much too quickly and instead built on the legacy and success of his predecessor Jurgen Klopp.
Two away games at Newcastle and Everton follow in the next week. For the sake of competition and excitement over the festive season, the chasing pack could do with somebody stepping up to slow Liverpool down.
Arsenal is Chief Chaser
Mikel Arteta's Arsenal look best set to challenge the pace set by Liverpool at present. Arsenal's record is identical to London rivals Chelsea (in points, goal difference, goals scored, goals conceded, the lot) but past experience instinctually sets the two apart. Arsenal is just hitting form at the right time and has scored 13 goals in three matches since the international break.
In its arsenal, excuse the pun, is a goal-a-game guarantee from set pieces and a weekly warning that Gabriel and Bukayo Saka are FPL must-haves. If you could draft Nicolas Jover you would.
Manchester United visit the Emirates Stadium in midweek facing a team that's set an example of how to build from the bottom up over the span of years. What we see in Arsenal now is a team coming into its own at a crucial, busy period in the season, with a favorable fixture list.
Chelsea's Wacky, Brave Strategy Shows Signs of Pay-Off
This isn't to say Chelsea are going to fall away. It's amazing what a few wins can do and for a team that has been ridiculed and criticized, Enzo Maresca has done his job admirably—stripping out the noise and putting the football first. Victory over Aston Villa on Sunday pushed Chelsea into third only in alphabetical order from Arsenal, and underlined that the Blues have moved through their period of biggest challenge. The club has been reshaped, the drama has gone, and it's time to look forward.
Cole Palmer continues striking belters and in Nicolas Jackson, Chelsea are developing a prolific center forward who has all the attributes about him to lead a top Premier League frontline. The Senegalese can become more potent, sure, but eight goals in 13 league matches is a fantastic return for a player maturing in line with his team, the youngest in the division on average.
Chelsea has not been there and done it like Arsenal have in recent seasons, but that's not to say it couldn't. You wouldn't bet against Chelsea to keep pace in the short-term at least.
Spurs Fall Back Into the Predictable Pattern
This column, last week. "It was Ange Postecoglou's finest moment but the challenge remains for Tottenham to continue this feeling and performance no matter the opponent, and we're talking inversely," on the topic of Tottenham going to Manchester City and winning 4-0, in one of its finest ever Premier League performances.
"Tottenham's difficulty, as has proven the case, is beating teams that it is expected to beat," it continued.
Next Premier League result: Tottenham Hotspur 1-1 Fulham.
Tottenham has injury troubles, like many of the rest, but the challenge remains. Spurs will continue to be Spurs until this changes.
Amad is Rúben Amorim's Real Deal
Manchester United dispatched of Everton 4-0 at Old Trafford on Sunday in a game which was tied up and settled within 46 minutes. It's not something we've become accustomed to, with habits developing instead of United's struggle to overcome any team regardless of their quality. Winning by such a margin against Sean Dyche's strugglers was some welcome relief for home support in a week which has put them back of the line in terms of importance again, amid rising ticket prices.
Don't let the goals convince you on the team's improvement just yet, though. United were far from perfect but far more potent—Amorim himself even admitted his team played better in a narrow 3-2 win over Bodø/Glimt on Thursday night in the Europa League than on Sunday. The Portuguese acknowledged that United had lost control of the game at points and instead scored in the right moments, which may paint a picture for those not watching closely that United are in recovery when there's a lot more work to do.
Amorim will not be taking any short cuts and seems to be the guy wanting to get to the root of the problems once and for all instead of papering over the cracks like some of his predecessors.
In Amad, though, he has a gem. The Ivorian typified what Amorim wants in his Manchester United and is week by week becoming more deserving of a regular starting place than most.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as What We Learned in EPL Round 13: Guardiola Talks About Six as Liverpool Steam Clear at the Top.
