Liverpool v Man City goes wild: Salah, Haaland & title race chaos live

Kick-off! As of today, 2026-02-09, the pitch is on fire... Did you keep up with all the football results today? Because if you blinked, you probably missed another twist in a ridiculous title race. The headline act: a breathless clash at Anfield where Liverpool and Manchester City threw absolutely everything at each other, with the Premier League live narrative swinging on every attack.

Liverpool 2–2 Manchester City: Heavyweights trade haymakers

This was pure chaos from the first whistle. Manchester City struck first, and of course it was Erling Haaland. On 18 minutes, Kevin De Bruyne slipped a filthy reverse pass between the lines, Haaland peeled off his marker, and buried a low left-foot finish into the far corner. Goal-scorer: Erling Haaland, ice-cold as usual.

But Liverpool hit back before the break. In the 37th minute, Mohamed Salah did exactly what Mo Salah does: he cut in from the right, combined with Dominik Szoboszlai, got the return just inside the box and smashed a curler into the top corner. Goal-scorer: Mohamed Salah, and Anfield absolutely erupted.

Second half? Even more wild. City thought they had control when a slick move down the left saw Phil Foden drive a low cross into the six-yard box where Julián Álvarez arrived right on time. Goal-scorer: Julián Álvarez, 2–1 to City, and Pep’s bench exploded onto the touchline.

But Liverpool refused to die. In the 84th minute, a corner wasn’t cleared properly, Virgil van Dijk nodded it back into the mixer and substitute Darwin Núñez threw himself at it, powering a diving header past Ederson. Goal-scorer: Darwin Núñez, 2–2 and a complete meltdown in the Kop.

VAR drama at Anfield

The real flashpoint came deep into stoppage time. City thought they’d won it when Haaland smashed in another after a scramble, only for VAR to step in. The check ran for what felt like a lifetime, eventually ruling that Rodri had handled the ball in the build-up. Goal disallowed, Liverpool fans celebrating the decision like a winner, City players surrounding the referee in disbelief. The hot topic all over social right now: that VAR call on Haaland’s would-be winner.

Heroes and flops

Haaland was a monster all game – his movement, his pressing, his finish for the opener were all peak Haaland, but he walks off furious after seeing a potential match-winning brace chalked off. Salah was electric: one goal, constant danger on the break, and dragged Liverpool up the pitch every time they were under pressure. De Bruyne ran the show for long spells, threading passes into spaces that barely existed.

Defensively, both sides had wobbles. Van Dijk had big interventions but lost Álvarez for City’s second. On the other side, Rúben Dias and Gvardiol struggled badly with Núñez’s chaos once he came on. It felt like every famous name on the pitch was either a hero in one moment and a liability the next – pure top-level football mayhem.

Elsewhere in today’s football results

Across Europe, the football results today were just as spicy:

• Arsenal 3–1 Newcastle – Goals from Bukayo Saka, Martin Ødegaard and Gabriel Jesus blew Newcastle away after Alexander Isak had briefly raised hopes for the visitors. Saka in particular was sensational: one assist, one goal, and he tortured the right flank all evening.
• Real Madrid 2–0 Sevilla – Jude Bellingham came up huge again. He scored the opener with a late box run and then slid in Vinícius Júnior for the second. Bellingham’s timing is ridiculous; he looks like he’s scripting La Liga by himself right now.
• PSG 1–1 Lyon – Kylian Mbappé grabbed the opener with a trademark burst in behind and composed finish, but Lyon stunned PSG with a second-half equaliser from Alexandre Lacazette. Mbappé faded late on and will catch some heat for missing a huge one-v-one to kill the game.

So between Haaland, Salah, Bellingham and Mbappé, the biggest stars all stamped their names onto today’s headlines – some as saviours, some as nearly-men.

Title race tension: who’s on top now?

That 2–2 at Anfield changes everything. Instead of either Liverpool or City taking full control of the Premier League live title race, they’ve basically kept the door wide open for Arsenal, who cashed in fully with that win over Newcastle.

Right now, the top three are bunched together with barely anything between them – a single win or slip could flip first and third overnight. Liverpool’s draw is huge for their unbeaten home record, but City will quietly be annoyed they didn’t kill it off when they were on top. Arsenal, meanwhile, are absolutely loving this, creeping closer and applying pressure from just behind.

What does this mean for the title race? Click here for the live standings

The league table shows just how thin the margins are now – goal difference, head-to-head, every tiny detail is going to matter from this point on.

Social Media Spotlight: Anfield melts the internet

Everyone’s talking about the same moment: Haaland’s late, disallowed goal. City fans are fuming, Liverpool fans are posting freeze-frames from every angle saying it was the right call, neutrals are arguing about how VAR is ruining the emotion of last-minute winners. The match hashtag #LIVMCI is absolutely dominating timelines.

Scroll those feeds and it’s non-stop: Salah's top-bin curler on loop, slo-mo of Núñez's diving header, City fans posting screenshots of the supposed handball in the build-up to that ruled-out Haaland goal. Football discourse at full volume.

Reporter's take: title race of the decade incoming

In my opinion, this is shaping up to be one of those generational title races we talk about for years. Liverpool and City are still the monsters of the league, but Arsenal are refusing to back down. On today’s evidence, none of these sides look flawless – which is exactly what makes it so addictive.

If I’m being brutal, City’s game management late on was poor. With Haaland, De Bruyne, Foden and Álvarez on the pitch you expect them to suffocate a game, not get dragged into chaos and rely on a controversial VAR decision. Liverpool, for their part, desperately need to stop conceding soft goals, but the mentality in this squad is outrageous. Every time you think they’re out, they come swinging back.

Salah and Haaland both showed again why they’re at the heart of every conversation about top scorers today – you just expect a goal when they get a sniff. The Golden Boot race is going to be as fierce as the title race this season, and nights like this are exactly why we’re glued to every single minute.

What's next?

From here on out, every fixture feels like a mini-final. Midweek Champions League news is about to collide with the domestic grind, rotations will kick in, and that's when surprises usually hit – late-season legs, injuries, tactical gambles. Keep one eye on the football league table and the other on the fixture list, because the next twist is probably just a dodgy backpass or a 94th-minute header away.

Check full stats & standings now

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