The match concluded in extraordinary fashion as Liverpool’s Szoboszlai was sent off in the 100th minute following a controversial VAR review. The incident occurred as Rayan Cherki rolled the ball into an empty net for City on the break; however, the goal was disallowed after officials ruled that Szoboszlai and Haaland had fouled each other in the build-up. The Hungarian midfielder was dismissed for denying a clear goalscoring opportunity, leaving Liverpool to finish the game with 10 men and a mounting injury crisis.
For City, the three points are transformative. With 13 games remaining, the six-point gap to Arsenal feels bridgeable, particularly with a Carabao Cup final and Champions League fixtures on the horizon. Guardiola acknowledged the difficulty of the task ahead, stating: "It is still a lot considering how strong Arsenal are in all departments. It is better to have. I said the same, 13 games is a lot in the Premier League.
"The final of the Carabao Cup is coming, the Champions League is here... so many games," Guardiola added. "Injuries and many things and every team play for something - Champions League qualification, Europa League, Conference League or not being relegated.
"Every game, the last 10 games from my experience, not drama but it is so difficult. The important thing is to try to be there, improve because the second half was not good enough again, and the game we did against Spurs was not good enough to win three points.
"Today it could happen the same. But it is a young team and maybe in the recent future we can improve on that."