With a 4-1 victory on Merseyside, Pep Guardiola’s side surged five points clear at the top of the Premier League table with a game in hand on all of their rivals.
Most significantly, though, they are now 10 points clear of Liverpool after ending their 18-year wait for a win at the home of the current defending champions.
City and Liverpool have comfortably been the best two teams in England in recent seasons, so to step into Anfield and deliver such a major statement is a considerable moment for Guardiola’s squad.
Liverpool may yet again have been without any recognised center-backs. Replacements Fabinho and Jordan Henderson struggled to cope with the movement and quality that Foden provided.
Jurgen Klopp’s side were out of form coming into this one. The defeat here means they have now lost three straight home league games for the first time since 1963.
This game always looked likely to be their last opportunity to throw themselves back into the title race. City quickly ejected them again despite the return of Alisson Becker and Sadio Mane to the line-up.
City’s missed penalty and Mohamed Salah’s own converted kick either side of Gundogan’s opener gave the hosts hope. But they rarely looked like the side that City have had such trouble with over the past three years.
Instead, it was Alisson who proved the unlikely villain for the home side, with the Brazil goalkeeper’s two errors. Allison gave a gift to Gundogan for his second and Raheem Sterling for the third.
City have now equaled the all-time winning run by an English top-flight side across all competitions.
With Liverpool now seemingly out of the race, it is difficult to see who can stop them claiming another title.
