Reds rinse City to extend lead and secure title race

Mind the gap. It looks unbridgeable now: 11 points to Arsenal, a barely credible 20 to Manchester City.

- RICHARD JOLLY

A title race that began with City as red-hot favourites could be almost over before February is. The dominant team this season, Liverpool were vastly superior at the Etihad Stadium.

With Arne Slot borrowing from Pep Guardiola’s tactical blueprint to outwit the master with his twin false nines, with the magnificent Mohamed Salah underlining his credentials to win the individual awards, with Dominik Szoboszlai delivering perhaps the finest display of his Liverpool career, with Virgil van Dijk marshalling a defence that had conceded too often in the last two-and-a-half months to deliver a display of defiance, this felt like the victory that ended any doubt. A 20th league title is bound for Anfield.

Slot, needless to say, was too cautious to say as much. “What we do know is no one saw us a title contender at the start,” he claimed. Now they seem the only contender left. “In every other league, having a lead like this would be comfortable,” Slot argued. There was no hiding his pleasure at the result, though: “If you play away at the Etihad and win there it is always a big win, no matter what the league table looks like.”

Dramatically different after a weekend when Arsenal lost but Slot counselled: “It is only three days ago someone asked me if we had a dip.” But a team who wobbled at Everton and Aston Villa made a statement at the Etihad. There have been a few from Slot’s side this season, the first on the other side of Manchester, the majority at Anfield. A double over City signalled the shift in the balance of power: from blue to red, Manchester to Merseyside.