Liverpool and Man City will meet in the Premier League in less than a month, but Pep Guardiola’s side face a testing run before then that also has implications for title contenders.
Arne Slot‘s side will travel to the Etihad on February 23, searching for their first league win at the ground since 2015 – though there is still a lot of football to play between now and then.
City’s struggles are well-documented. They sit 12 points adrift of Liverpool in the Premier League table having played a game more, dropping points an unheard of 11 times already.
They have managed to find their feet of late, though, winning five of their last seven in all competitions – although their one defeat puts them on the cusp of an early Champions League exit.
It means they must go full-strength in their final league phase match against Club Brugge, which comes just days before a trip to Arsenal in the league and could add two games to their schedule:
Club Brugge (H) – CL – Jan 29
Arsenal (A) – PL – Feb 2
Leyton Orient (A) – FA Cup – Feb 8
Possible Champions League play-off first leg – Feb 11/12
Newcastle (H) – PL – Feb 15
Possible Champions League play-off second leg – Feb 18/19
Liverpool (H) – PL – Feb 23
Man City currently sit one place outside of the Champions League play-off spots, but a win in their final game will guarantee progression and see them play the midweek before Liverpool’s visit.
Slot’s side have guaranteed their place in the last 16 and, therefore, will have seven days between their league meeting against Wolves (Feb 16) and their trip to the Etihad.
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The FA Cup clash against League One’s Leyton Orient is City’s only ‘reprieve’ in the coming weeks as Arsenal are battling to stay in touch with Liverpool and Newcastle are a team in form.
City have splashed the cash in the January window, spending £126.1 million on Omar Marmoush, Vitor Reis and Abdukodir Khusanov amid a number of injuries.
Many Liverpool fans would be more fearful of Guardiola’s side catching them at the top than the Gunners, but their upcoming fixture list will see points dropped by close rivals.
Not only do City meet Arsenal (2nd) and Newcastle (5th) in the coming weeks, they also travel to Nottingham Forest (3rd) on March 8.
That is not to say Liverpool have it easy, far from it. They will meet Bournemouth, Everton, Wolves, City and Newcastle in the league before the end of February. What a ride we have ahead of us!
