This archive report was first published on 6 July 2020.
On a day when Manchester City's title hopes were dealt a significant blow, Liverpool's Sadio Mane scored his 20th goal of the season to help the Reds beat Aston Villa 2-0 and keep their bid to set a new Premier League points record alive.
Mane's goal, which came in the 55th minute, was the decisive blow in a match that saw Liverpool dominate possession and create several scoring opportunities.
Victory moved Liverpool onto 89 points, just 11 points shy of Manchester City's record 100-point total from the 2017-18 season.
Despite a lackluster performance, Liverpool's manager, Jurgen Klopp, praised his team's ability to grind out a win in difficult circumstances.
'We are where we are because we win difficult games,' Klopp said. 'It was not a brilliant performance, but it was a good performance that gets us three points.'
Meanwhile, Manchester City's title hopes were dealt a significant blow as they were beaten 1-0 by Southampton at St Mary's Stadium.
City dominated possession and created several scoring opportunities, but were unable to find the back of the net, with Che Adams' spectacular first goal for Southampton proving to be the difference-maker.
City's manager, Pep Guardiola, was left frustrated by his team's inability to capitalize on their dominance.
'It was a little bit of a resume of this season – one mistake and they punished us,' Guardiola said. 'We played a really good performance, but it was not enough.'
