Manchester City and Liverpool have together redefined what was thought to be possible in a two-way race for the Premier League title this season.
Generally, hauls in excess of 90 points mean a dominant side cantering alone to glory, comfortably clear of the chasing pack.
But Liverpool s 97 points this time around is at once the third best in English top-flight history and only good enough for second place.
It is also the most points ever acquired by any team other than Pep Guardiola s City, who are the first side to retain the Premier League since Manchester United a decade ago.
Here s how they backed up last season s 100-point haul with a formidable challenger matching them step for step.
Flying out of the blocks
In a record-breaking title race, there is no time for sluggish starts. Liverpool swatted aside West Ham 4-0 in their Anfield opener, with Mohamed Salah picking up where he left off in 2017-18 and Sadio Mane bagging a brace. Later the same day, City saw off Arsenal 2-0 thanks to Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva – men who would go on to be stars of their campaign.
City and Liverpool each won six of their first seven matches, the only blemishes being respective 1-1 draws at Wolves and Chelsea. A home Champions League loss to Lyon for Guardiola s men and the Reds European defeat at Napoli suggested frailties domestic foes were largely unable to locate. The sides were all square heading into their October meeting on Merseyside.
WHHHHHAAAAATTTTTTT A GGOOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!
— Liverpool FC (@LFC)
Mahrez fluffs his lines
Perhaps the person to thank above any other for such a close-run title race is Riyad Mahrez. In a rare blot on his PFA Players Player of the Year campaign, Virgil van Dijk brought down Leroy Sane to hand City s record signing the chance to secure his club s first win at Anfield since 2003.
Mahrez promptly smashed his 85th-minute penalty over the crossbar and the deadlock remained intact in an encounter at odds with the goal-laden matches Klopp and Guardiola presided over last season. Both men declared themselves satisfied with the 0-0 draw, although – from a City point-of-view – Mahrez s miss was one to increasingly rue as the Premier League battle remained on a knife edge.
58 Among players to have taken at least 10 penalties in the Premier League, only Juan Pablo Angel (50%, 5/10) has a lower success rate than Riyad Mahrez (58%, 7/12). Fluffed.
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe)
City s December blues
Having cancelled one another out, the top-flight frontrunners continued to rack up wins. City s seven in succession post-Anfield meant they headed into the second weekend of December with a two-point lead – Liverpool having shared a 1-1 draw at Arsenal a month earlier.
Chelsea were penned back relentlessly at Stamford Bridge until N Golo Kante beat Ederson on the stroke of half-time. David Luiz completed a 2-0 win for Maurizio Sarri s side and, despite bouncing back by beating Everton 3-1, shock back-to-back reverses against Crystal Palace and Leicester City meant City had lost three out of four.
A fully deserved win against the champions
COME ON!
— Leicester City (@LCFC)
Fine margins at the Etihad
The upshot was a must-win assignment as the reigning champions hosted Liverpool on January 3 nursing a seven-point deficit. John Stones did what he could to redefine last-ditch clearances, hacking a looping ball out of City s goalmouth with 11 millimetres to spare, while Vincent Kompany was arguably lucky only to be booked for a robust challenge on Salah.
If that was evidence of City riding their luck, they cashed it in with a stirring performance that bristled with intensity. Sergio Aguero lashed a brilliant finish into the roof of the net five minutes before half-time and, after Roberto Firmino s wonderfully worked 64th-minute leveller, Sterling laid on Sane to rattle home the winner via the base of Alisson s far post. The race was on.
it s fine
— Manchester City (@ManCity)
So, basically, they thought they were gonna go seven points ahead
City appeared to have undone their good work by sleepwalking to a 2-1 defeat at Newcastle United on January 29. However, a day later, Liverpool failed to capitalise as Harry Maguire cancelled out Mane s opener to give Leicester City a 1-1 draw on Merseyside and Kyle Walker a reason to briefly reprise a popular World Cup meme.
That was the first of four draws in six games for Klopp s side – a significant and decisive slump in the context of an unprecedented season.
The long sprint to the finish
A 0-0 draw in the derby against Everton at Goodison Park concluded Liverpool s relative blip and they did not drop another point all season. City had no margin for error after losing at Newcastle, so did not make any – winning their final 14 league games.
s 20th goal of the season was the difference at Turf Moor!
— Manchester City (@ManCity)
Such flawless runs meant tension and high stakes – not least when Liverpool edged a five-goal thriller at Newcastle before City needed an unlikely Kompany thunderbolt to prevail against Leicester City in the penultimate matchweek. But those title-race staples of twists and turns were nowhere to be seen as two phenomenal teams skirted close to perfection.
