FC Liverpool vs. Manchester City 1:2 (0:0) – Hardly any other match has recently illustrated the fascination of the Premier League as much as this classic league clash on February 8, 2026. That’s why we embrace all the excitement. And we’re glad the Premier League is back from its one-week FA Cup break.
Erling Braut Haaland was exhausted. The Norwegian goal machine from Manchester City lay inside the penalty area of FC Liverpool and celebrated.
He had first handed FC Liverpool their latest-ever conceded goal leading to a defeat at Anfield and then appeared to have made it 3:1.
In a sprint duel over half the pitch, the Norwegian got the better of Dominik Szoboszlai, who desperately tried to stop City’s goal machine with a “textile brake.”
However, the goal did not stand up to the VAR review – instead, there was a free kick for Man. City (!) and a red card for Szoboszlai, who had sent “The Reds” into ecstasy with a long-range free kick to make it 1:0 (74’).
In those minutes, you could just as well have displayed the notice “infomercial” in the top right corner of the TV screen.
Because the fans witnessed one of the most turbulent finales in recent Premier League history. Bernardo Silva (84’) equalized to make it 1:1 before a penalty was awarded to the “Skyblues” in stoppage time.
Erling Braut Haaland needed no second invitation – and converted to make it 2:1. The clock showed 92 minutes and 42 seconds, making it the latest winning goal for an away team at Anfield since 2006/2007.
Liverpool conceded their latest goal in almost 20 years against Manchester City on February 8, 2026 – Is this what a normal goal celebration looks like? Photo: Imago Images / Shutterstock
Liverpool vs. Manchester City: “A Commercial for the Premier League”
“What drama, what a sensational match,” cheered England legend Keir Radnedge in Kicker Sportmagazin (issue of February 9, 2026), “a commercial for football and the Premier League.”
For Erling Braut Haaland, now in his fourth Premier League season since moving from Borussia Dortmund to Manchester, at least one goal has been recorded in 23 different stadiums in England’s top flight.
Only at the Stadium of Light, home of AFC Sunderland, has the Norwegian never scored.
Another takeaway: As reigning champions, FC Liverpool apparently cannot beat Manchester City!
In the 2020/2021 season, as defending champions, they lost their only home match out of 22 to the “Skyblues,” who celebrated only their fourth-ever victory at the football temple of Anfield with the 2:1 win on February 8, 2026.
And at Anfield, appreciation for him continues to grow: Florian Wirtz. The €125 million signing from Bayer Leverkusen may not yet be fully settled at Anfield Road, but he has found his footing. He impresses with his tactical versatility, sometimes playing in the No. 10 role or dropping deep into midfield. He now stands at 14 goal involvements (six goals) from 35 appearances for the Merseysiders.
The first notable achievement: Premier League professionals voted him “Player of the Month” for January 2026.
Wirtz Teams Up with Beckham – A Milestone
Wirtz is becoming truly strong in Liverpool – that was my prediction right after his transfer, when he turned down FC Bayern and there was some sulking in media circles in Munich.
For his first twelve matches with the “Reds,” Florian Wirtz struggled – he failed to register a single goal contribution.
But that is completely normal in the high-pressure environment of such a traditional club, which had made significant investments and was now falling short of expectations. There is no need for mockery.
Especially not since Florian Wirtz has turned things around in Liverpool – with four goals and three assists in the last 13 Premier League matches. Since mid-December 2025, he has scored six goals across all competitions.
The Wirtz effect has not gone unnoticed in the advertising industry either. As the esteemed colleagues at SPORT BILD (issue 7 / 2026) reported, an advertising campaign featuring Wirtz and England’s football icon Sir David Beckham for a beverage giant is on the agenda shortly.
Filming is scheduled for late February 2026, the advertising contract for Wirtz is set for two years – reportedly earning him €1.5 million.
Florian Wirtz could – one must always be cautious with such predictions, just ask Jan Age Fjörtoft, who predicted a major Premier League breakthrough for Niclas Füllkrug at West Ham United – become the new German star of the league.
,,Big Nick” Woltemade: Unhappy in Newcastle?
At the start of the season, that role seemed destined for Nick Woltemade.
The 1.98-meter striker moved from VfB Stuttgart to Newcastle United for €75 million. “Big Nick” became only the third German to score on his Premier League debut (after Jürgen Klinsmann in 1994 for Tottenham Hotspur and Ilkay Gündogan in 2016 for Manchester City), yet signs are growing that he could leave Tyneside after just one season.
In February, Woltemade flirted with a desire to move to Bayern Munich, who had reacted irritably after his transfer. Bayern legend Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, known in Munich as part of the “department of plain speaking,” congratulated VfB Stuttgart – not without a hint of mockery – “for finding an idiot willing to pay such a transfer fee.”
Already a “Killer Kalle classic”! But mockery is inappropriate when it comes to the Premier League and its value for players, coaches, fans, and TV rights holders.
Back to the facts. Woltemade has been waiting for a Premier League goal since December 20, 2025. “Woltemade’s decline to a sporadically used substitute had not been foreseeable,” wrote Kicker Sportmagazin after United’s 1:4 debacle at FC Liverpool.
In the match against Newcastle, Wirtz recorded two goal involvements and later told the BBC: “I just had to stay strong and believe in myself. I told myself: You did so well in Germany, you can’t have simply forgotten how to play football here.”
No. Florian Wirtz – or: How to make it in the Premier League.
Der Autor: Carsten Germann berichtet seit 2002 aus erster Hand über den englischen Fußball, u. a. für DIE WELT, BILD am SONNTAG und seit April 2021 auch als leitender Redakteur beim Portal Fussballdaten.de. Zudem gab er mit den Büchern Football’s home (2007) und Absolute Dynamite! (2010) zwei Sammelbände mit seinen Fußball-Reiseerlebnissen aus Großbritannien heraus. Für DIE FUSSBALLREISE schreibt er regelmäßig über den Insel-Kick.