Manchester City host Liverpool on Saturday in a game that could decide the fate of the Premier League title race, but manager Jurgen Klopp believes the game will be a key indicator of how close the Reds are to becoming champions.

He said it was not something he would try. City have won five of the last six titles, with Liverpool winning the other. This is Chelsea's only second championship since winning in 2017. City and former Bayern Munich manager Guardiola and Liverpool and former Borussia Dortmund manager Klopp have faced each other more times than any other manager, 28 times. Klopp has won 11 games and Guardiola has won 10. "He made me better," Guardiola said of Klopp. "He and his team, here and Dortmund, are always big rivals. It's a good match for both sides, always attractive with a positive approach. He has made me a better coach through the team." The Reds have been well off title-winning pace for two of those seasons, but are once again becoming a threat. If Liverpool win against the current leaders in their first Premier League match after the international break, they will return to the top of the table for the first time since May 2022. " This is not a test of how close we can get to City. 
It's just a very exciting football game," Klopp said. "But for us it's not something to get excited about. We know we have to prepare properly and we have to do our best to get the chance. And it's important that we seize it. 


City have won their last 23 home games and are just one game away from equaling Sunderland's record for winning streak for a top English club between December 1890 and April 1892. It's more likely that it's over," Klopp said. Liverpool have only won once of the last 14 times they have faced City in the Premier League (D5 L8). The 4-1 victory was Klopp's first visit to the Etihad Stadium in November 2015. Last season, they lost 4-1 to City with Mohamed Salah's opening goal. April 1 turned out to be a false dawn for the visitors. "Saturday is a tough game. This is the strongest team in the world for the last few years," said Klopp. " Our record [at the Etihad] is not that good if you ask me. They are very strong. There is nothing I can say that will weaken them. Otherwise I will repeat .Last year is just a memory. `` Liverpool were beaten by City by a huge margin last season and did not even qualify for this season's Champions League, finishing outside the top four for the first time in a full season under Klopp. However, in the summer, Klopp decided to improve his midfield Premier League side .


An almost unprecedented overhaul has been undertaken, withcaptain Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all out for a total of £51m. Alexis Mac Allister, Dominic Szoboszlai, Wataru Endo and Ryan Gravenbirch joined for around £145m. Szoboszlai, the Hungarian national team captain who was signed from Leipzig, has been very successful so far. He has won the most possessions (88), He ranks in the top five in the Premier League for passes completed into the opposition half (434) and chances created (28).

Former Blackburn striker Chris Sutton said: "Liverpool have increased the level of quality in the center of the park thanks to the players they have brought in. I would like to pay the greatest respect to the former Liverpool midfielders. , they were more of a runner.” "It's completely different from two years ago when we had two No. 6s in Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, who were the main players in the team," said former England winger Andros Townsend, who plays for Luton. "They did n 't come forward too much and were ready to sit back and wait for a counter-attack. They cut the ball and gave the attackers a feed. "Now, when the ball is on the defensive side, three players You have midfielders, they all have the quality to get on the ball, they can turn and play forward. You don't have a minute's rest, you have to switch on for 90 minutes.
' Former Liverpool and Ireland midfielder Ray Horton agrees. "They ' re more animated in that area of ​​​​​​the field," Houghton told BBC Radio Merseyside. "The changes the manager made were the right ones to bring in younger, fresher players. "Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister are fit and if Alexis pushes him a little further up the pitch then it will be even better. It's going to get better.'' But former City player Michael Brown sees weaknesses. "In past seasons, you would be worried because Liverpool have won all their games, looked strong and are running away regularly," Brown said. "I don't think they'll be at that level this season. I've been watching them and I'm still a bit concerned about that midfield . I don't think there are any players who are holding on to players, and I think City can easily take advantage of that because they have the freedom to move them around.''