Liverpool Humbled By Haaland-Less Man City

Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said his side allowed Manchester City to “do what they wanted” as the Reds were thrashed 4-1 at the Etihad on Saturday.

City did not miss the injured Erling Haaland as goals from Julian Alvarez, Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan and Jack Grealish moved the defending champions back to within five points of Arsenal at the top of the table.

City and Liverpool have finished as the top two in four of the past five Premier League seasons, but Liverpool’s humiliation in the closing stages summed up a dreadful season for Klopp’s men.

A chastening defeat leaves them still seven points adrift of the top four.

“We were not there anymore. We were completely open, too passive, too deep,” said Klopp of his side’s second half performance.

“Against City 14 or 15 players need to be on top of their game. After being 3-1 down it’s difficult but, apart from that, City could do what they wanted because the spaces were too big. We were lucky they only scored one more.”

A groin injury meant Haaland was watching on from the stands alongside his father and former City midfielder Alfie Haaland.

But City shrugged off the absence of their 42-goal striker as Alvarez stepped up with a rare chance to start and Grealish produced arguably his best performance since joining the club for a Premier League record £100 million in 2021.

“From the first minute until the 93rd minute, it was almost the perfect performance,” said Guardiola.

“Always we have fought against Liverpool. The way they defend, the way they play is so difficult for us, but today the players were magnificent”.