It's set to be a clash of the titans. Supported by the red half of Merseyside and the red half of North London, Liverpool welcome fellow English Premier League powerhouses Manchester City to Anfield for Sunday's main event.
The hosts enter gameweek 25 four places and eight points worse off than Pep Guardiola's men in the Premier League table, but with an identical record from their last six top-flight games - one defeat, four draws and a measly one win.
The sixth time was the charm for Liverpool as far as Premier League fixtures in 2026 are concerned, as following four straight stalemates and a devastating Bournemouth defeat to begin the New Year, Arne Slot's men slaughtered Newcastle United.
The Magpies travelled to Merseyside after holding Champions League champions Paris Saint-Germain to a 1-1 draw, but they left their defensive resilience in the French capital, as a Hugo Ekitike and Florian Wirtz-inspired Reds stormed to a 4-1 victory after initially falling behind to an Anthony Gordon strike.
Memorably producing comeback after comeback during Jurgen Klopp's final season, Liverpool continue to harness their turnaround powers under Arne Slot; since the start of the 2024-25 season, they have claimed 28 Premier League points when conceding the first goal, the fourth-most in the league.
Liverpool's kit men have evidently been dusting off the players' best shooting boots too, as the hosts have now racked up 15 goals in their last four games after putting six past Qarabag and three past Marseille in the UCL, as well as two beyond Bournemouth.
A coveted top-five spot is still out of the Reds' hands, though - they begin the gameweek two points below Manchester United and one adrift of Chelsea - while Brentford and Sunderland could still catch them with one dissatisfactory result.
For the second week running, Arsenal supporters will switch top-six allegiances for their latest Man City hate watch, after a regressing Tottenham Hotspur put an unexpected dent in the Sky Blues' title aspirations in an engrossing 2-2 draw.
Seemingly cruising to victory after Rayan Cherki and Antoine Semenyo's strikes, Guardiola's men perhaps allowed complacency to creep in during the second half, when former Liverpool striker Dominic Solanke stunned the visitors with a game-levelling brace.
Now dropping points in five of their last six Premier League encounters, Man City have fallen six points behind Arsenal, who have been far from flawless in 2026 but returned to their ruthless ways by putting four past Leeds United last weekend.
A Gunners win over Sunderland would temporarily increase their cushion to nine points, and road trips have not been kind to Guardiola's troops of late, as the visitors are winless in each of their last three away from home and have conceded at least two goals on each occasion.
However, City followed Liverpool's lead by taking down Newcastle 3-1 in Wednesday's EFL Cup semi-final second leg - setting up a Wembley date with Arsenal in the process - and their 3-0 win over Liverpool in November means that they are just 90 minutes away from a first-ever Premier League double over the Reds.
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With Liverpool hoping to boost their chances of qualifying for the Champions League, a win against Manchester City in the Premier League at Anfield on Sunday would be a significant boost.
However, the Reds come into the clash in sixth place with 39 points, while City are second in the table with 47 points, and they will have ambitions of competing for the title.
Still, Manchester City are searching for only their second victory at Anfield in over two decades when they travel to Liverpool.
With both Liverpool and Man City managing defensive injuries, the contest could open up into an expansive encounter. Firepower exists on both sides, and recent form suggests goals.
