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Last season, Liverpool and Manchester City were involved in the closest title race that we have witnessed since Manchester City ousted Manchester United on goal difference in the 2011-12 season. Going toe-to-toe almost every week, Liverpool and City created a thrilling rivalry, with both teams trying to outmuscle each other at every turn.
Eventually, Manchester City pipped their arch-rivals to the trophy by one point - gathering 98 points compared to Liverpool's 97.
Liverpool vs Manchester City is by far England's biggest game at this point. Even though both the teams would always like to win against their common rivals Manchester United, the Reds and the Cityzens are two squads the like of which the Premier League has rarely seen before.
Garnering record points, led by the two best managers in the world right now, and with squads to rival any in Europe, these two heavyweights promise to deliver the most exciting league fixture in Europe every time they meet. Choosing a winner is nigh impossible, but what is guaranteed is a brilliant game where every aspect of football comes into play.
Liverpool vs Manchester City truly is a game that never disappoints. Here, we take a look at the last three Premier League encounters between these two teams, starting with the most recent one.
1) Manchester City 2-1 Liverpool, Etihad, 3 January 2019
Taking place in the 22nd gameweek of the 2018-19 Premier League season, Liverpool went to the Etihad as league leaders, four points ahead of Manchester City. Both the teams knew that victory here would help their cause moving further into the season, as three points against their biggest rivals would be of immeasurable importance come the final few games.
Spoiler alert - they were.
The game lived up to the hype. Manchester City opened the scoring with who else but Sergio Aguero; the Argentine international netted one home in the 40th minute as Alisson Becker could only watch. If there was ever a man who loved scoring home goals against Liverpool, it has to be Aguero - this was the striker's seventh goal in his last seven appearances against the Reds at the Etihad.
Just over the one-hour mark, a beautifully worked Liverpool attack saw Andy Robertson lob the ball to an open Roberto Firmino, who headed the ball into an empty net. The away end was raucous, and it was the Brazilian's second time scoring at the Etihad.
City, however, were not giving up. They kept attacking, and eventually, it was the pacy Leroy Sane who slotted a well-placed shot beyond Liverpool's Brazilian goalkeeper.
That goal was enough to give Manchester City all three points, ending Liverpool's nine-game winning streak and reducing the deficit at the top. Eventually, City pipped Liverpool to the title by a single point - showing how important this game was in the long run.
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2) Liverpool 0-0 Manchester City, Anfield, 7 October 2018
Since the Arabs took over Manchester City and invested billions into the squad, the Cityzens have won at every single stadium in England where they have played - bar one. Manchester City have achieved everything domestically, but a win at Anfield has always eluded them.
The stadium is often called their "bogey ground".
As far as Liverpool vs Manchester City games go, this one was a comparatively drab affair. Nobody expected a lack of goals in this game, but that is what the scoresheet read in the end - a 0-0 draw with the two sides sharing the points. The last time both the teams failed to score was back in 2010.
Liverpool, however, were lucky to escape this game with even a single point. In the 86th minute, Riyad Mahrez failed to convert a spot-kick after Leroy Sane was adjudged to have been fouled by Virgil van Dijk in the box. The Algerian international skied his kick, leaving City fans in disarray as the home fans celebrated.
On the positive side for City, this was the first time they had kept a clean sheet at Anfield since 1986. They will be looking to repeat their performance at one end come this Sunday.
Mahrez's miss meant that Anfield remains the only ground that Manchester City have yet to conquer, a statistic that might be weighing on Pep Guardiola's head as he leads his men to battle.
3) Liverpool 4-3 Manchester City, Anfield, 14 Jan 2018
When Manchester City traveled to Liverpool during the 23rd gameweek of the Premier League 2017-18, they had not lost a single game until then. Heavy favourites for the league title, some people were flirting with the idea of an Invincibles season.
After all, only two teams had had longer unbeaten runs in a single league campaign - Manchester United with 24, and that Arsenal team in 2003-04 which did not lose a single game.
Liverpool was probably the last hurdle that Pep's men had to clear before they could start believing in the impossible.
What followed was an absolute classic, a match for the ages. A sure-shot winner for the game of the season, Manchester City were outdone and outclassed by a Liverpool team who would inflict onto the Cityzens their first defeat of the season.
After the Reds went up thanks to an absolute screamer by Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, City equalized before half time thanks to a brilliant Leroy Sane goal. In the second half, however, Liverpool tore City apart.
Roberto Firmino chipped over Ederson to give Liverpool the lead near the hour mark. Two minutes later, Sadio Mane unleashed an absolute rocket which left City trailing by two goals - something they were not used to.
At that moment, Anfield sensed that the City players were shook at what was happening. A few minutes later, Mohamed Salah unleashed a through ball which Ederson cleared. But to his misfortune, the clearance went directly back to the Egyptian, who shot from almost 45 yards out and made the ball land at the back of an empty net.
Liverpool 4, Manchester City 1. Guardiola could not believe what he was witnessing, and Anfield was as loud as it had ever been.
City did get two goals back in the last 10 minutes of the game through Ilkay Gundogan and Bernado Silva, but that was not enough as the Reds ended the Invincibles dream for their opponents.
City's winless run at Anfield had continued, and they had conceded four goals under Guardiola for only the second time.
If history is anything to go by, then this latest encounter between the two best teams in England will be an absolute cracker. Klopp vs Guardiola, Aguero vs Van Dijk, De Bruyne vs Fabinho - these are some of the battles awaiting us at Anfield, in a game which will have major title ramifications.
