With the second international break of the season now upon us, it is time to take a deep breath and after events at Anfield on Sunday, a breath is what will be taken by those involved in the latest edition of the burgeoning Liverpool and Manchester City rivalry.
A rivalry which over the past few seasons, has been one that has had Premier League success on the line and with the last three editions of the competition crowning a winner from these two outfits, they will both be aiming for more overall celebrations at the end of the campaign.
Celebrations that had to be shared last Sunday, as the two title hopefuls played out a frenetic draw on Merseyside and although the first half did not quite live up to top billing, the second more than made up for it.
If this could be billed as a heavyweight clash in footballing terms, then the first 45 minutes can only really be considered as light sparring between the two and with Liverpool looking rather static before the break, City will have perhaps regretted their failure to land a considerable jab.
Regrets that will have only been increased by the time Sadio Mane connected onto Mo Salah’s slide rule pass and with the African duo linking up in perfect harmony, it gave those in attendance the first goal of the afternoon.
A goal that highlighted just how alert Liverpool had become since the restart and although they were playing at a much higher level after leaving the dressing room, their level was not enough to keep the visitors at bay.
With Gabriel Jesus making a foray infield, he laid on a perfect pass for Phil Foden and although the England international looked as if his first touch was slightly too heavy, he slammed the ball past Alisson in the Liverpool goal to restore parity.
Which meant the pendulum had swung in another direction with that leveller, and it would swing again by the time Mohamed Salah bobbed and weaved through the City defence, to score a stunning goal that was worthy of winning any important encounter.
With Jurgen Klopp’s men now ahead for the second time, the question was whether they could now hold out until the final whistle. The answer for them, was unfortunately no and with Kevin De Bruyne firing home from the edge of the box, the visitors restored parity for a second time.
Although it must be said, the Belgian midfielder had an element of fortune, as his strike cannoned off Joel Matip and with the additional touch of the Cameroon international, it was enough to divert the ball past a hapless Alisson.
As per usual, this was a game that was certainly a heated affair and once again, Pep Guardiola cut an animated figure throughout – as decisions went against him and although he showed obvious umbrage at this, earning a point at your nearest rivals cannot be considered as cause for complaint.
