Man City 2-2 Liverpool: 'Neither deserve to finish second'

One of the best things about watching the thrilling draw between Manchester City andLiverpool was knowing we will get to see them again at Wembley this weekend.

The football we saw at the stadium was very good and showed how far ahead of the rest of the league these teams are.

The league table tells you there is a gap when you look at how many more points the top two have won, but I mean in terms of their level of performance, where there is a gulf in the standards they are setting compared to everyone below them. They are miles ahead.

I am talking about both teams and the relentless pace they set: their energy, their intensity, their quality of play and the players who are behind all of that.

They have been doing this for a while now, entertaining us with brilliant football whenever they meet and driving each other on to greater heights.

We will be able to watch them again on Saturday in the FA Cup semi-final, which is on the BBC. I can't wait to see what happens in these games.

A draw was probably a fair result

In October, we saw the same 2-2 score when City went to Anfield. Both sides felt they could have won it.

Even though City were the better team in the first half, the way they were pegged back by the Reds was probably a fair result.

The side was a bit more direct than normal, to get around and behind the high defensive line, and they caused some problems with those balls over the top for their wide men to chase.

City could have been out of sight by the break, but they missed some big chances, and they were never going to lie down.

Many teams come to the stadium and sit in, but that is not how the Reds want it to be.

He tried to get plenty of men forward whenever the Reds broke, but he wanted to be tight and compact.

Everyone was on the edge of their seats until the final whistle, because it meant there were opportunities at both ends.

Neither manager will change their style of play when they meet again.

Both teams have a strong identity and their players believe in it. It was an entertaining game because they stuck to it here.

Kevin de Bruyne was immense for City with the way he kept driving them forward, but it was the collective that you have to admire.

We are fortunate to have two world-class football teams, going toe-to-toe with one another, and with so much at stake.

Minute margins will decide what happens next

Both clubs are trying to do something very special this season, with City going for the Treble and the Reds still in the running for the quadruple.

To get this far, with their hopes of lifting multiple trophies alive in the middle of April, is just incredible and shows how good they are.

We have to have a winner and a loser at Wembley this week, and it is likely to be the minutest of margins that decide which team is which. It almost always is.

The John Stones goal-line clearance that earned City a vital win when they met at the Etihad in the middle of last year is something you might remember.

The difference was that it was millimetres that made the difference on that occasion.

It is still very close in the title race and the FA Cup semi-final is going to be very close.

City know that if they win every game, the title is theirs, but they also know that if they slip up, they could be in trouble.

When you look at the run-ins of both teams, it looks like City is a bit easier to beat. They have proven that.

The FA Cup final on 14 May will cause the match on 15 May to be rearranged.

I still think there will be twists and turns for both clubs.

Whoever wins at Wembley and progresses in Europe will face a crazy schedule in the next few weeks, but they have got the squad to deal with it and this scenario is where they set out to be at the start of the season.

I don't know which one will win the league. It is unfortunate that one of them has to finish second, because neither of them deserve that.

Alan Shearer was talking to Chris Bevan.

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