LIVERPOOL, England (Reuters) – Manchester City opened up a commanding five-point lead at the top of the Premier League as Ilkay Gundogan scored twice in a 4-1 victory at Liverpool for whom keeper Alisson endured a Sunday afternoon to forget.
An emphatic win, City’s 10th in a row in the league and first at Anfield since 2003, moved Pep Guardiola’s side to 50 points from 22 games, five more than second-placed Manchester United who have played a game more.
Champions Liverpool are now 10 points behind City in fourth spot, also having played a game more, and if further evidence were needed that they have gone off the rails it was the sight of Alisson, a rock for the past two seasons, effectively gifting City the points.
In the space of three second-half minutes he twice passed the ball straight to an opposing player, allowing first Gundogan to grab his second goal, after Mohamed Salah had levelled from the penalty spot, and then Raheem Sterling to make it 3-1.
The excellent Phil Foden capped a superb day for City with his side’s fourth to leave Liverpool crestfallen.
Fourth-placed Liverpool are the first reigning top-flight champions to lose three successive home league games since Chelsea in 1956 and they are a massive 27 points worse off than at the same stage of last season.
For City, who have won 14 straight games in all competitions, they are now overwhelming favourites to claim a third title in four seasons.
“It’s brilliant, every player wants to play in big games like this and we showed that courage from minute one,” Foden said. “We definitely forced the errors, it’s something we’re working at in training.”
