Premier League betting reaction: Citizens 2-5 to successfully defend their crown

Manchester City have moved one step closer to defending their Premier League crown after a thrilling 2-2 draw with title rivals Liverpool saw the day finish as it began with the Citizens one point clear at the top.

With only seven games to go and as a result of a generous run-in, Pep Guardiola’s gang have been trimmed from 4-9 to 2-5 with bet365 to lift the title for a fourth time in five years. The Reds are 2-1 to spoil the party.

It was billed as one of the biggest matches in Premier League history and it lived up to all expectations as the top two went toe-to-toe in a topsy-turvy encounter.

It was 2-2 when these two heavyweights clashed at Anfield in October and it was the same result at the Etihad, with the draw having been available at 11-4 pre-match.

The Citizens landed the first blow inside six minutes when brilliant Belgian Kevin De Bruyne, who was 17-2 with Betfair to open the scoring, saw his deflected strike fly past Alisson.

It took only eight minutes for Liverpool to level matters with in-form Portuguese forward Diogo Jota on target, although Gabriel Jesus restored City's deserved lead before the break with his first Premier League goal since September.

Liverpool equalised immediately after the interval through Sadio Mane and, despite City's best efforts, it finished with honours even.

Raheem Sterling thought he had clinched it against his former side just after the hour but his goal was ruled out by VAR for offside, while Riyad Mahrez came close twice to snatching all three points late on.

At the bottom of the table, Burnley are 4-11 for the Premier League drop after suffering a 2-0 defeat at relegation rivals Norwich.

Pierre Lees Melou gave the Canaries an early lead at Carrow Road before Teemu Pukki sealed the deal with his ninth goal of the season four minutes from time.

It was a first win in eight for Norwich although it wasn’t enough to move them off of bottom spot. They are still seven points shy of safety and are 1-150 with bet365 to be playing Championship football next term.

As a result of Everton’s 1-0 win over Manchester United on Saturday, the third-bottom Clarets now find themselves four points adrift of the Toffees with eight games to play.

Elsewhere, Leicester are up to ninth in the Premier League following a 2-1 win over Crystal Palace while Brentford stung West Ham’s European qualification hopes with a 2-0 success in the capital.

Not got a bet365 account? Bet £10 & get £50 in free bets

Open account offer. Minimum deposit requirement. Free Bets are paid as bet credits and are available for use upon settlement of bets to value of qualifying deposit. Minimum odds, bet and payment method exclusions apply. Returns exclude bet credits stake. Time limits/T&Cs apply. 18+ begambleaware.org

CLAIM OFFER HERE

MORE FREE BETS

Sign up to emails from Racing Post Sport and get all the latest news and tips

Today's top sports betting stories

Follow us on Twitter @racingpostsport