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Man City-Liverpool Could Go Long Way toward Deciding Champ

Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Liverpool - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - April 1, 2023 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola with Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp before the match. (Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Liverpool - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - April 1, 2023 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola with Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp before the match. (Reuters)
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Man City-Liverpool Could Go Long Way toward Deciding Champ

Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Liverpool - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - April 1, 2023 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola with Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp before the match. (Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Manchester City v Liverpool - Etihad Stadium, Manchester, Britain - April 1, 2023 Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola with Liverpool manager Juergen Klopp before the match. (Reuters)

Reigning Premier League champions Manchester City visit Liverpool on Sunday in a match that is being billed as a potential title decider.

The truth is more convoluted. Entering the weekend, the top three teams in the league were separated by two points. Liverpool (19-2-6, 63 points) is a point up on City (19-3-5, 62), while Arsenal entered its Saturday matchup against Brentford two points back of the Reds.

The hype machine was in full gear ahead of the key Sunday match, and it was given more kindling after Liverpool's Trent Alexander-Arnold asserted that the trophies Liverpool win "mean more" to City's squad do because of City's financial resources.

City's Erling Haaland and Ruben Dias are among those who responded to Alexander-Arnold, leaving both managers trying to lower the temperature on the fixture in what could be the final meeting between Liverpool's Juergen Klopp and City's Pep Guardiola.

The latter insisted his players -- who have won the last three Premier League titles -- didn't need to engage in the pregame chatter to preserve the club's dignity.

"They defend the club not by responding to this guy but what they have done for many years on the pitch every three days," Guardiola said. "I'm incredibly proud of what we have done and I don't need that to feel that my players are really trying to do it."

City are aiming to become the first-ever four-time repeat English league champions but have spent precious little time in the lead this season in part because of Liverpool's excellent campaign.

And while the Reds endured some key injuries in February, they appear to be getting closer to full health. Leading scorer Mo Salah was the latest to return to the squad, having made a late appearance off the bench on Thursday in a 5-1 win at Sparta Prague in the UEFA Europa League round of 16.

Meanwhile, City's star tandem of Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne are also in form. Haaland has scored in five of his last eight matches (10 goals total), and De Bruyne has assists in five of his past eight contests (nine total).

While Sunday's match is critical, the quality on both sides leaves Klopp believing a bad result for either side won't be fatal.

"If you go through all of the possible scenarios, I don't think after whatever result anybody should open the bottles of champagne," said Klopp, who is stepping down at the end of the season.

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US Elimination from Copa America Increases Pressure to Fire Berhalter

Coach Gregg Berhalter of the United States directs his players during a Copa America Group C soccer match against Uruguay in Kansas City, Mo., Monday, July 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffman)
Coach Gregg Berhalter of the United States directs his players during a Copa America Group C soccer match against Uruguay in Kansas City, Mo., Monday, July 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffman)
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US Elimination from Copa America Increases Pressure to Fire Berhalter

Coach Gregg Berhalter of the United States directs his players during a Copa America Group C soccer match against Uruguay in Kansas City, Mo., Monday, July 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffman)
Coach Gregg Berhalter of the United States directs his players during a Copa America Group C soccer match against Uruguay in Kansas City, Mo., Monday, July 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Reed Hoffman)

The United States was eliminated from the Copa America with a 1-0 loss to Uruguay on Mathías Olivera's questionable second-half goal Monday night, a defeat sure to increase pressure on the US Soccer Federation to remove coach Gregg Berhalter before the 2026 World Cup.
Uruguay scored in the 66th minute when Nicolas De La Cruz swung a free kick in front of the US goal. Matt Turner parried a header by Ronald Araújo, who out-jumped defender Tim Ream, but the rebound went right to Mathias Olivera and he tapped the ball in with his left foot, The Associated Press reported.
Olivera appeared to be offside on the initial header but the goal stood after a video review.
Using a lineup of players entirely from European clubs, Berhalter and the US hoped to show the team had advanced since its round-of-16 elimination against the Netherlands at the 2022 World Cup. Instead, the US managed only a 2-0 win over lowly Bolivia and were upset 2-1 by Panama, putting it in a tough situation Monday night.
“We had a good start and brought a lot of energy but at the end of the day, just not enough quality,” US captain Christian Pulisic said. “I felt like we gave it everything but we just couldn't score.”
Three minutes before Uruguay scored, the US was in position to advance when Bruno Miranda tied the score for Bolivia against Panama in a game that started simultaneously in Orlando, Florida. But Panama went on to a 3-1 victory and claimed the second spot in Group C behind Uruguay.
Berhalter was rehired in June 2023 and given a contract through the upcoming World Cup, which the U.S. will co-host with Canada and Mexico. But despite a lineup that included Pulisic, Weston McKennie and Tyler Adams, the US failed to even match its last Copa America appearance, when it lost to Argentina in the 2016 semifinals.
During the second half Monday night, the home crowd began chanting, “Fire Gregg.”
The US next plays September friendlies against Canada and New Zealand.
Uruguay played without coach Marcelo Biesla, suspended for sending his team out late for the second half of its first two games. Diego Reyes and Pablo Quiroga were in charge on a mild but humid night in Kansas City.
Berhalter and the Americans knew the difficulty of their situation — Pulisic at one point said they would need to play “the best game of our lives” to advance — and they looked like a team with nothing to lose for most of the first half.
It was one marked by physical play and questionable calls.
Folarin Balogun, who had two goals already in the tournament, bore the brunt of several challenges. He was left calling for help after a collision with Uruguayan goalkeeper Sergio Rochet, then was left rolling on the field after Araújo’s challenge later in the half. Balogun eventually had to leave with a hip pointer and Ricardo Pepi took his place.
Uruguay lost Maximilliano Araújo earlier in the half after a scary collision with Ream near the US goal. He had to be taken off the field on a stretcher, though he was able to move his arms before heading up the tunnel.
In the middle of the chaos was 32-year-old Peruvian referee Kevin Ortega, whose several questionable calls hurt the US.
The first came when Ortega began to pull a yellow card and stop play, then allowed it to continue — while still holding the card — as Uruguay nearly scored on an attack. The second came when the US had a clear advantage after a hand ball on Uruguay, but the Peruvian referee eventually blew his whistle and called the play back for a free kick.
Antonee Robinson called it “amateur hour” but lamented the Americans' failure to rise above the referee.
“The result is on us,” he said, “and we weren't good enough.”
Uruguay started to apply more pressure midway through the second half, then had the Americans in desperation mode after Olivera found the back of the net. And while the US had a few good runs, and a couple of good opportunities in the box, a team that had such big expectations was unable to find the two goals it needed — or even one.
“I mean, now it's just about getting a little bit of rest and regrouping and finding an identity again, and we have some big things ahead,” Pulisic said. “We're going to look forward to that.”