Liverpool vs Manchester City, premier league leaderboard battle! From the Big6 to the troika to the Two Kings

To draw a line for the end of the Big 6 era in the Premier League, it should be after the 2018 Champions League final. With the decline of Tottenham and Manchester United, as well as the efforts of West Ham, Wolves and Leicester City to go upstream, the Premier League in recent seasons is no longer monopolized by a few specific teams.

But no matter what the situation is, only Manchester City and Liverpool can talk about the word "title" in the Premier League in recent years.

Since the start of the 18-19 season, Manchester City's total of 338 points has been scored, and Liverpool have accumulated 337 points. They are followed by Chelsea (264 points), Manchester United (257 points) and Tottenham Hotspur (246 points).

Such a gap highlights the dominance of Manchester City and Liverpool.

Situation between the two armies

Manchester City and Liverpool continued their strength at the end of last season, and Chelsea also brought the momentum and change of the Champions League champions to the Premier League, and the troika situation was established at the beginning of the season.

However, Chelsea, which mainly plays a 3-4-3 formation, encountered a painful period in the case of a large-scale injury at wingback, and manager Thomas Tuchel also lost ground between change and invariance, losing points and withdrawing from the Premier League title.

City have won 11 consecutive games from November to January, constantly trying to close the gap with Liverpool. In comparison, Liverpool's development is relatively stable, the players have improved, and the newly recruited players in these two seasons have also integrated quite well.

In the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, the Premier League won together, but compared to Liverpool, who did not have the elite to do their best and still understated to win Benfica, Manchester City could only take advantage of a small period of adaptation after the other army changed sides to steal chicken goals, and the rest of the time were subject to Atletico Madrid's almost 5-5-0 formation of the iron barrel, not only the whole field was weak, such a small gap, so that they have to worry about the future, to reserve physical strength for the second leg.

Back in the Premier League, Liverpool's style of play is far more open than Atletico's, and there is far more space available in the backcourt than Atletico. However, the difficulty of Manchester City's soldiers is the frequent adjustment of combat mentality and physical exertion in a short period of time.

Data comparison

This season, the following data that reflects the "domination of the game" are all ranked first in the league and second in the ranking of the whole Premier League:

Average number of touches per game (822 vs 761), possession per game (68.7% vs 62.7%), average number of shots created per game (29.4 vs 8.8), minimum number of shots per game (6.5 vs 8.2).

The two teams stand out in the Premier League, and in terms of controlling the game, Guardiola has more tricks. Klopp's side, however, did even better in front of goal. Liverpool rank first in the league and Manchester City second in the following stats:

Total goals scored (77 vs 68), xG per game: (2.47 vs 2.29), xG difference (+3.0 vs-0.8).

Deriving from the above, whether it is the overall statistics of the team or the level of individual performance, Manchester City and Liverpool are in the Premier League as if they are leading the way. How are their players actually performing this season?

MANCHESTER CITY: A slight shift in the core

Guardiola moved Jesus to the right wing, and either combination was a frontless formation. With the explosion of Gundogan at the end of last season and the growing importance of Phil Foden and Mahrez, The depth of Manchester City's squad can be described as the most diverse season since Guardiola took charge this season.

Injured in the European Cup, as Manchester City's absolute main force for many years, De Bruyne entered the game a little slower this season, but the team scored three points in the Premier League with Chelsea and Liverpool early. After the big victory in December, De Bruyne began to continue to work hard. His partner Bernardo Silva, along with full-back Cancelo, who is also almost full-time, combined to form the attacking lifeblood of Manchester City.

Interestingly, Cancelo is the player who touched the most balls in the penalty area in the Premier League, and it is hard to imagine that this will be the data played by the full-backs. As a full-back, the frequency with which Hascello has entered the middle to participate in the organization is the focus of this season's Manchester City system. On attack, he sided with defender Rodri, allowing the winger and the other full-back to pull the edge. This season's Manchester City game, there is no lack of images of Cancello holding the ball to the front line, which can be described as Manchester City's third playmaker.

You know, De Bruyne's shooting performance this season is much better than last season's, because the center of gravity of the midfield control has shifted slightly, allowing De Bruyne to participate in more shots after his comeback, and his goals this season have reached double digits.

Liverpool: Last season full of injuries was like a head-to-head drink

Liverpool won the title in the 2019-20 season, but after a season of injuries, it took several hardships to rush to third. However, the lack of depth on the bench is the reason why they can't maintain the championship level.

Creating opportunities for wingers to play is Liverpool's secret in recent years, and Salah and Mane are all fierce players who can carry the team's front line with their own strength. Although the two had to juggle the Africa Cup of Nations, Diogo Jota and recruit Díaz were technically able to fill the gap between the African duo.

Jordan Henderson, who excelled at making up positions everywhere and performing all-rounders, Thiago, who dared to play the core of the ball control, Nabi Keita, who dared to intersperse formations and deepen the offensive level, and Roberto Firmino, who hovered between midfield and the front, played the role of auxiliary striker. Liverpool's midfielders are getting more and more tacit, bringing further strengthening to the African wings.

Not only is Salah currently the Premier League goalscorer (20 goals), but the assists table is also dominated by Salah and Liverpool defenders in the top 3. Alexander-Arnold is also the player with the most shots on goal in the Premier League (128).

From the beginning of the premier league, Manchester United and Arsenal competed, to the rise of Chelsea and Liverpool to form a "Big 4". Followed by Manchester City, which has been kryptonian for many years, and Tottenham Hotspur, who have made rapid progress, to join the "Big 6" competition, until recent seasons, Manchester City and Liverpool dominate the United Kingdom.

As a fan, the most important thing is to see these two super-class teams, in this season's Champions League and Premier League can fight vigorously to the final stage. Then next season, let go of the body, let the Premier League repeat the situation of big fights.