Newly crowned champions Liverpool were caught cold as they suffered a 4-0 defeat at the hands of the outgoing champions Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Thursday night.
With the title wrapped up last week, there were some expectations that the Reds wouldn’t be at their best shape coming into this game and it proved to be the case with them conceding four poor goals and missing some glaring opportunities to score at the other end.
After making a good start to the game where they pressed well and created turnovers, Liverpool conceded three goals in quick succession before half-time.
The first came through a penalty when Joe Gomez pulled Raheem Sterling back in the box. Kevin de Bruyne stepped up to score the spot-kick.
The second goal came through a swift City counter-attack which was polished off by a nice ball from Phil Foden to allowe Sterling to score.
Thereafter, the aforementioned assist-maker got a goal for himself after some lovely play at the edge of the box. Andy Robertson’s positioning for the second and third goals was questionable, to say the least.
Pep Guardiola’s men made it four after Trent Alexander-Arnold lost the ball in a bad area, allowing Riyad Mahrez to counter before Sterling was through on goal. His initial shot was going wide but covering Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain slid the ball into his own net.
All in all, a forgettable display from the Reds, who looked way short of pace.
Here’s how we rated the Liverpool players:
