Liverpool kicked off the weekend’s action down in 10th place in the Premier League.
The Reds had won just two of eight games and their title hopes are all but over already.
As for Manchester City, they remained the only side left undefeated in the top-flight this campaign.
But, when all was said and done at Anfield, it was Liverpool who came away with the win.
Liverpool showed a lot of intensity in the opening stages of the game but failed to really test Manchester City. City’s only real chance of the first half came late on when Kevin De Bruyne floated a ball to Erling Haaland, who was to wide to score with his header.
Liverpool then had a great chance early in the second 45 when Mohamed Salah was out through on goal but Ederson made a superb save.
The next big chance of the match came 75 minutes in. Alisson collected the ball from a free-kick and smashed it up the field towards Mo Salah, who got the better of Cancelo and scored.
📰 Table Of Contents
Liverpool player ratings
Alisson (7) – Made a few good saves, including one just after the hour to deny Haaland. Got the assist for Salah’s goal.
James Milner (6) – Started well against Phil Foden.
Joe Gomez (6) – Helped Milner in dramatically reducing the threat of Phil Foden.
Virgil van Dijk (6) – A quiet game from the Dutchman but he was largely solid. Made a good clearance to stop a Haaland goal late on.
Andy Robertson (5.5) – Skied a great chance 24 minutes in. Did a good job of keeping KDB and Cancelo fairly quite early on.
Fabinho (6) – Made a great interception to deny a certain goal 57 minutes into the game.
Thiago (6) – Thiago’s passing was excellent in the first 45, helping Liverpool control the game against the usually dominant Man City.
Harvey Elliott (5.5) – Tracked back well early on to provide cover down Liverpool’s right.
Mohamed Salah (7) – Nearly scored 50 minutes in but was denied by an excellent save. Caused City’s left issues all game and got his goal late on.
Roberto Firmino (5) – Linked play well but did not test City too much.
Diogo Jota (4.5) – A pretty quiet first 45 from the Portuguese. Missed a massive chance 55 minutes in.
Substitutes
Jordan Henderson (N/A)
Darwin Nunez (3) – Should have played Salah in late on the kill the game off but didn’t
Fabio Carvalho (5) – A lively presence in midfield when he came on.
Trent Alexander-Arnold (N/A)
Manchester City player ratings
Ederson (6) – Made a superb save to deny Salah 50 minutes in.
Joao Cancelo (4) – Saw little of the ball and had a hard time finding Haaland. Cost City a goal with his poor tackle on Salah.
Manuel Akanji (5) – Looked solid defensively, keeping Firmino and Jota largely at bay.
Ruben Dias (4.5) – Struggled to deal with the pace of Salah throughout the match.
Nathan Ake (5) – Made a number of good tackles to stop Liverpool attacks.
Rodri (5) – Had a hard time controlling the tempo of the game like he normally does.
Kevin De Bruyne 5.5) – Was unable to impact the game in the first 45. Much better in the second half.
Ilkay Gundogan (4.5) – Offered some threat going forward but his trademark runs into the box were lacking.
Bernardo Silva (4) – Pressing and positioning was poor in the first half especially.
Phil Foden (5) – Struggled to deal with the constant pressure of Elliott, Milner and Gomez.
Erling Haaland (5) – Saw very little of the ball in the first half. Had a few chances in the second half but he was unable to get his goal.
Substitutes
Julian Alvarez (N/A)
Fan reaction
Firminho shouldn’t have been subbed.. Nunez is a clown
— Uncle G (@tuitown) October 16, 2022
Nobody will mention it for obvious reasons, but van Dijk has been absolutely quality.
— FSG OUT (@ShaunlfcT) October 16, 2022
Expert view
100 – Mo Salah has become only the second player in @premierleague history to score 100+ left-footed goals, after Robbie Fowler (105). Wand. pic.twitter.com/giCYYW1UoM
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) October 16, 2022
For some reason top level refs haven’t applied the rules on dissent for decades. Ref correct to do so today at least. https://t.co/I5sqHFXFim
— Adam Crafton (@AdamCrafton_) October 16, 2022
Virgil van Dijk has now played 69 Premier League games for Liverpool at Anfield:
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0 defeats. Nice. 👌 pic.twitter.com/tLFPZcej5R
— Squawka (@Squawka) October 16, 2022
