Liverpool beats Man City to move nine points clear in the Premier League

Liverpool is in control of the Premier League title race. Manchester City is in free fall.

A 2-0 win against City on Sunday moved Liverpool nine points clear at the top of the standings and 11 ahead of Pep Guardiola’s four-time defending champion.

Goals from Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah exposed the gap between the title rivals and emphasized the deepening crisis for Guardiola, whose serial title winners languish fifth in the standings.

“We weren’t perfect, but we came close to perfection and that’s the only way you can beat a quality team like City,” Liverpool head coach Arne Slot said.

It’s now seven games without a win for City in all competitions, including six losses during that run.

The latest defeat at Anfield could have been even more emphatic, with Virgil van Dijk hitting the post and Salah missing the target when through on goal in a game which Liverpool totally dominated.

The home crowd mocked Guardiola, chanting he would be fired in the morning. With his team unable to respond, it was left to him to hold up six fingers in reference to the six league titles he has won in seven years during a period of unprecedented domestic dominance.

“Maybe they're right, that I must be sacked (fired) for the results we have, but I didn't expect (that) in Anfield,” Guardiola said. “It’s fine. It’s part of the game. I understand completely and accept it. We had incredible, incredible battles together.”

City's dominance looks increasingly likely to come to an end this season, with Guardiola enduring the worst losing streak of his managerial career and Liverpool looking a potential champion after such an impressive start under Slot.

It’s 11 wins from 13 games in the league for Slot, whose team also leads the Champions League standings.

Victory against City came days after beating European champion Real Madrid by the same score line and having already seen off German champion Bayer Leverkusen 4-0.

“I don’t think anyone including me would have predicted this,” Slot said of his team's start to the campaign.

In contrast, City’s players look bereft of confidence, having thrown away a three-goal lead against Feyenoord in the Champions League on Tuesday, just days after being thrashed 4-0 by Tottenham.

Guardiola’s team could have been behind even before Gakpo’s opener in the 12th minute, following a wonderful threaded cross by Salah. And Liverpool should have wrapped up the game long before Salah eventually converted a penalty in the 78th when City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega brought down Luis Diaz in the box.

Guardiola has now lost four straight league games for the first time as a manager, Premier League stat supplier Opta said. The last time City lost four in a row in the league was 2008, Opta said.

Amorim effect

Ruben Amorim got Manchester United fans smiling again after a 4-0 win against Everton.

In his first Premier League game at Old Trafford, the home crowd serenaded United’s players with “ole” as they played one of their best performances of the season. It marks a big change from the boos that rang around the stadium toward the end of former manager Erik ten Hag’s reign.

In Amorim’s third game in charge in all competitions since taking over last month, United produced its best performance under him, with Marcus Rashford and Joshua Zirkzee scoring two goals each.

“It is a nice result. It is important with a new coach and a new way of playing, we are still learning. We have to back up this performance,” Rashford said.

Amorim is undefeated since taking over last month and United is ninth - four points off the top four.

While performances on the field are pleasing supporters, there were protests off it over increasing ticket prices.

A banner displayed both inside and outside the stadium read: “Stop exploiting loyalty”.

On target

It hasn’t taken long for Amorim to get United’s strikers scoring.

Rashford has three goals in three games under the Portuguese, having managed four in 18 before that.

Rasmus Hojlund scored twice in the Europa League win against Bodo Glimt and Zirkzee’s double on Sunday were his first goals since the opening game of the season.

Goals had been hard to come by under Ten Hag, with United only scoring eight in nine games in the league before he was fired.

Rashford began the rout against Everton in the 34th minute and Zirkzee doubled United’s lead five minutes later. Rashford scored again a minute into the second half and Zirkzee’s second came in the 64th after a swift break.

Chelsea run

Third-placed Chelsea moved back level on points with second-place Arsenal after inflicting the latest loss on Aston Villa.

Goals from Nicolas Jackson, Enzo Fernandez and Cole Palmer ensured Chelsea kept up with London rival Arsenal.

For Villa, it’s eight games without a win in all competitions and a fifth defeat during that run.

Villa dropped into the bottom half of the standings in 12th place.

Spurs slip

Tottenham couldn’t follow up last week’s stunning victory against City with another win that would have seen it edge closer to the top four.

Brennan Johnson put seventh-place Spurs in front in the second half, but substitute Tom Cairney leveled the game before getting sent off late on.

___

James Robson is at https://twitter.com/jamesalanrobson

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer