Man City vs Liverpool FC title showdown next month may not happen

Everyone is excited for the showdown - to use Ilkay Gundogan's word - when Manchester City play Liverpool next month, and understandably so. Not only was the same fixture in 2019 a belter of a game, it also proved critical in separating the two teams at the end of the season.

As Jurgen Klopp's challengers try to reel in the champions, this could be a repeat scenario where the squad that leaves the Etihad the happiest in the second weekend of April is the one that will be lifting the trophy at the end of May. As if the 2-2 draw between the sides back at Anfield in October wasn't exciting enough, this comes with added pressure (and added excitement for neutrals).

There is precedent too, with the meeting in January 2019 ultimately helping to separate the two rivals by a single point come the end of the season. Not only was it a fantastic game of football as a one-off, but Klopp spoke recently about the feeling that the title was decided by the 11-millimetres gap between the line and the ball before John Stones whacked it clear in that match.

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And not only do such high-profile occasions rarely live up to expectations, they also rarely take on such significance over the course of a 38-game season. It is why decisions such as the Rodri handball at Goodison, while a damning indictment of the standard of refereeing, cannot be blown up as defining moments for City, Everton, or anyone else in the league.

Pep Guardiola has helped to raise the standard in English football, lifting the points required to win the title into the mid-90s. Liverpool found that out to their cost in 2019 when they lost just one out of 38 games but finished runners-up