Guardiola's City Overcome Haaland Absence to Sink Reds
City Maintain One-Point Advantage Over Liverpool After Pulsating Draw
Foden and De Bruyne Goals Cancel Out Salah's Late Strike
Manchester City weathered the absence of star striker Erling Haaland to earn a hard-fought 1-1 draw with Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday. The result maintains City's one-point advantage over Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table.
Kevin De Bruyne opened the scoring for City in the fifth minute, but Liverpool equalized through Mohamed Salah's 80th-minute goal. Despite a dominant display, City were unable to find a winning goal, but they extended their unbeaten run to 16 matches in all competitions.
Phil Foden was particularly impressive for City, creating several chances and hitting the woodwork in the first half. De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, and Riyad Mahrez also had their moments for the hosts, but they were denied by a resolute Liverpool defense.
Liverpool, without the injured Roberto Firmino, struggled to create clear-cut opportunities but grew into the game as the second half progressed. Salah's equalizer was a moment of brilliance, as he cut inside and fired low into the bottom corner from just outside the box.
The draw was a fair result in a match that could have gone either way. City had the better chances, but Liverpool showed great resilience and determination to come back from a goal down. Both teams will be disappointed not to have won, but they will also be pleased with the point they earned.
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