Liverpool cemented their place at the top of the Premier League table with a commanding 2-0 victory over Manchester City at Anfield on Sunday.

Goals from Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah secured the Reds’ 18th win in 20 matches this season under manager Arne Slot.

Gakpo opened the scoring in the 12th minute, converting Mohamed Salah’s precise cross after a dominant start from Liverpool. The home side could have extended their lead in the first half, with Virgil van Dijk hitting the post and City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega making key saves to keep the scoreline respectable.

Manchester City, meanwhile, continued their poor form, failing to win for the seventh consecutive match in all competitions.

Pep Guardiola’s side has now lost six of those games, dropping to fifth place in the league and 11 points behind Liverpool.

Their title defence appears to be faltering after winning four consecutive league titles in previous seasons.

City’s struggles at Anfield were evident from the outset, as they found it difficult to deal with Liverpool’s intensity and the support of the home crowd.

The visitors managed only one attempt on goal in the first half, with Rico Lewis firing wide as Guardiola’s men laboured to gain a foothold.

The decisive moment came in the second half when Luis Diaz capitalised on a defensive error by Kyle Walker and won a penalty after being brought down by Ortega.

Salah, who missed from the spot against Real Madrid earlier in the week, made no mistake this time, calmly slotting in his 13th goal of the season.

City’s response was muted, despite Guardiola introducing Kevin De Bruyne, Jack Grealish, and Jeremy Doku from the bench.

Erling Haaland was effectively nullified by Van Dijk, who marshalled Liverpool’s defence with authority.

De Bruyne had a chance to score after a rare lapse from Van Dijk, but goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher denied him.

Fans at Anfield taunted Guardiola, who responded by gesturing to his six Premier League titles in the last seven seasons, but the gesture did little to mask City’s decline.

Guardiola was taunted with chants of “you’re getting sacked in the morning” towards the end of the game but the City boss responded by showing six fingers, one for each of the Premier League titles he won in the past seven seasons.