This Is The Test That Could Define Liverpool’s Season So Far

Few games on the English football calendar carry the weight of Liverpool against Manchester City at Anfield, and Sunday’s renewal arrives with an extra layer of intrigue. City walk into Merseyside still dealing with the fallout from being found guilty of breaching one hundred and fifteen of the Premier League’s financial rules, a verdict that has left their position at the top of the table under a cloud of asterisks for supporters elsewhere in the division. That subplot will matter to some, but for Liverpool the only thing that counts is three points.

Andoni Iraola’s side arrive on the back of an encouraging run. A frustrating draw with Fulham has been followed by an EFL Cup win over Tottenham and a league victory against Bournemouth, steadying the ship after a stuttering start to the campaign. Sunday offers a far sterner examination of where this Liverpool team really stands, against opposition that will arrive wounded but still dangerous.

Fitness Worries Cloud The Build Up

The build up has not been entirely straightforward. Reports from Iraola’s press conference suggest both Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo are touch and go for the weekend, after both were carefully managed through the recent international fixtures with their respective countries, with genuine doubts over whether either striker will be risked for such a demanding fixture so soon after the international break.

Iraola says Isak and Gakpo are both ruled out of Sunday’s game v Man City

— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) October 9, 2026

Losing both forwards at once would be a significant blow against a City side capable of suffocating a game through sustained possession, and it could force Iraola into a reshuffle up front, with Lewis Koumas potentially handed a rare chance to lead the line at Anfield.

How Liverpool Could Line Up

Alisson Becker continues in goal behind a back four of Ronald Araújo, Virgil van Dijk, Jérémy Jacquet and Milos Kerkez, with the captain anchoring a defence that will need to be alert to City’s movement in the final third. Alexis Mac Allister and Trey Nyoni look the likely midfield pairing, offering the control and protection Iraola wants in front of his back line, with Dominik Szoboszlai pushed forward into the number ten role behind the front line.

Ahead of them, Bradley Barcola and Florian Wirtz would provide width and directness from either flank, with Koumas or another central option leading the line if neither Isak nor Gakpo is deemed fit enough to start. It would be a different look up front to the one many fans expected heading into this fixture, but there is enough quality in that front line to trouble a City defence that has not always looked entirely settled this season.

Why The Atmosphere Could Be Decisive

Anfield has a long history of producing special nights against City, and few grounds in England generate the kind of noise Liverpool’s crowd can summon when the stakes are this high. That backing will matter on Sunday, but Iraola’s players cannot rely on the crowd alone to do the job for them.

Pressing with real intensity while staying disciplined enough not to be caught in transition will be the balance Liverpool need to strike. Press too recklessly and City have the quality to pick a side apart in the spaces left behind, while sitting too passively would simply invite the champions to dictate the tempo of the entire afternoon.

Verdict

Recent results have given Liverpool supporters genuine reason for optimism, but a fixture of this magnitude tends to reveal exactly how far a team has really progressed since the start of the season. Mac Allister will need to dictate the tempo in midfield, Nyoni must shield the back four, and whoever leads the line has to turn home advantage into real, clear cut chances.

Win this and Liverpool close to within three points of the league leaders while keeping their unbeaten record intact, a result that would represent a genuine marker for Iraola’s project at Anfield. City will arrive expecting to impose themselves as champions do, but there is every reason to believe Liverpool can make this an uncomfortable afternoon for their visitors.

Our prediction: Liverpool 2-0 Manchester City.