Manchester City face Liverpool in the Premier League on Sunday in their first outing since they were found guilty of breaching financial rules over a nine-season period.
City will travel to Anfield on Sunday
City will travel to Anfield on Sunday
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The Premier League has confirmed Chris Kavanagh will take charge of what is sure to be a fiery affair as Manchester City travel to Anfield on Sunday. The game will be City's first since they were found guilty of breaching financial rules over a nine-season period.
An independent three-man panel found that the club hid more than £900million, though City have always insisted they are innocent and have appealed against the decision. When the outcome of said appeal is reached and communicated remains to be seen, but in the meantime the show must go on and Enzo Maresca's side's first outing since the bombshell announcement will be against Liverpool.
The irony of City facing the side they have occasionally pipped to the Premier League title so soon after the outcome of the hearing was revealed is not lost on anyone. Sunday's encounter promises to be an unforgettable occasion, and Kavanagh is the man tasked with keeping everything in check.
Assisting Kavanagh at Anfield on Sunday will be Dan Cook and Nick Greenhalgh. Andy Madley is the fourth official, while Paul Howard and Nick Hopton are the VAR and assistant VAR, respectively.
While a white-hot atmosphere is expected at Anfield on Sunday in light of the outcome of the charges brought against City, clashes between these two sides have rarely been drab occasions in recent years. City did the double over Liverpool in 2025/26 - as well as dumping them out of the quarter-finals of the FA Cup - beating Arne Slot's side 4-0 at the Etihad before a late Erling Haaland penalty secured victory at Anfield later in the season.
Szoboszlai is sent off for fouling Haaland
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Dominik Szoboszlai was sent off in the clash at Anfield as Pep Guardiola's men took three points from the home of their fierce rivals for the first time since February 2021. The two aforementioned victories at Anfield are City's only league triumphs at Liverpool since 2003.