Manchester City has been at the top of the Premier League table for months without a break, but in the end it will be very tight again: on the last day of the game, Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool FC is very close and City is well behind. Then the former Klopp student Ilkay Gündogan decides the championship.
On the legendary Anfield Road, Liverpool FC fans smashed their “You’ll Never Walk Alone” for the disappointed Jürgen Klopp and his runner-up. A good 50 kilometers away, the supporters of Manchester City turned their arena into a sky-blue party center – with national player Ilkay Gündogan right in the middle. City secured the title again in a dramatic Premier League final on Sunday, with Klopp’s Liverpool ending the season second.
The Reds, for whom the historic chance of four titles is over, won 3-1 (1-1) against Wolverhampton Wanderers. But with the 3:2 (0:1) after City was 0:2 behind, especially thanks to the double goal scorer Gündogan, the defending champion maintained the lead in the table. Manchester celebrated their eighth championship, seconds after the final whistle the fans stormed onto the pitch.
The game at Anfield started with a shock for the hosts when Pedro Neto (3rd minute) scored for Wolves. The Reds, initially without their top scorer Mohamed Salah, who was injured recently, looked a bit nervous, but were the team that dominated the game and scored a well-deserved equalizer through Sadio Mané (24th). Then a deafening cheer erupted from the famous Liverpool stand, The Kop, as news of Man City’s deficit spread. Matthew Cash (37th) scored for Aston Villa, whose coach Steven Gerrard narrowly missed the title with Liverpool in 2014 and never celebrated a championship.
Mané scored again for Liverpool shortly after the start of the second half, but the goal was ruled out for offside. Klopp, who kept gesturing nervously on the sidelines, brought Salah for Diogo Jota after just under an hour. The intermediate result from Manchester, where Philippe Coutinho (69th) scored for Villa, caused jubilation again. The Brazilian had played for the Reds from 2013 to 2018.
But then substitute Gündogan (76th and 81st) and Rodri (78th) scored. Liverpool’s goals from Mohamed Salah (84′) and Andy Robertson (89′) were ultimately worthless. Gündogan of all people: The midfielder was once brought to Borussia Dortmund by Jürgen Klopp from Nuremberg, together they won the double of championship and cup in Germany in 2021.
This ended one of the most exciting title races in England for years. In February, Liverpool were twelve points behind Man City, who had played two games more than their long-term rivals at the time. In the final spurt, the two teams, which had twice played 2-2 in direct league duels, were only separated by one point.
Former BVB coach Klopp won the first championship in 30 years with Liverpool in 2020. His team have already lifted the League Cup and the FA Cup this year, meaning that the 54-year-old has now won every title in England. In addition, Liverpool could win the Champions League for the second time after 2019 in a week. In the Paris final on Saturday we face Real Madrid.
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