Liverpool’s trip to the Etihad Stadium turned into a night to forget as Manchester City comfortably ran out 3-0 winners, leaving Arne Slot’s side reeling and their Premier League title defence effectively over.
The Reds were outclassed from start to finish, undone by Pep Guardiola’s tactical mastery and their own lack of urgency and adaptability. Former Liverpool defender Steve Nicol was among those who didn’t hold back in his criticism, questioning Slot’s in-game management and tactical rigidity as City dominated every area of the pitch.
From the opening whistle, Manchester City looked the sharper, hungrier, and more organized team. Guardiola’s decision to overload the midfield left Liverpool chasing shadows for most of the first half.
The reigning champions pressed with intelligence, controlled possession with ease, and suffocated Liverpool’s attempts to build from the back. Erling Haaland opened the scoring after missing an earlier penalty, making amends in typically ruthless fashion.
As the half drew to a close, Nico Gonzalez struck a second in stoppage time to give City a deserved two-goal cushion at the break.
Liverpool, by contrast, looked lost and disconnected. Their midfield trio struggled to track City’s runners, while the front line so often the source of their success barely got a touch of the ball in dangerous areas.
Mo Salah, isolated on the wing, cut a frustrated figure, and Florian Wirtz, deployed centrally, found himself repeatedly bypassed by City’s fluid movement. Despite Virgil van Dijk seeing a potential equaliser controversially ruled out, the Reds never truly looked capable of matching their opponents’ intensity or rhythm.
The second half saw a slight improvement from Slot’s men, but by then the damage had been done. City’s control never wavered, and it was man-of-the-match Jeremy Doku who put the game beyond doubt with a brilliant curling strike from outside the box, sealing a result that reflected the gulf in class on the day.
Liverpool’s rare forays forward were easily snuffed out, and their first meaningful shot on target didn’t arrive until the 73rd minute something Nicol was quick to highlight in his post-match analysis.
Speaking on ESPN, the former Reds defender expressed his disappointment in Slot’s lack of tactical response during the game. “Other than maybe five minutes after half-time when Liverpool looked as though they were trying to get back in it, that was it,” Nicol said.
“We laughed at Spurs the other week for how long it took them to get off a shot, and Liverpool were exactly the same. It took 73 minutes for Donnarumma to make a save. That’s simply not good enough.”
Nicol went on to criticize Slot’s inaction in the first half, arguing that the Liverpool boss should have made changes to counter City’s dominance. “Arne Slot was sat on his hands and changed nothing. Liverpool were getting completely overrun and he did nothing,” he added.
“Mo Salah might as well have been sitting on a deck chair watching what was going on. Florian Wirtz doesn’t know how to defend properly, and they were getting completely outnumbered in midfield. At least affect the game get more bodies in the middle, do something. You can’t just let it unfold like that.”
The criticism reflects a broader concern among Liverpool supporters that their side has lost the dynamism and aggression that defined them in recent years. Under Slot, the Reds have attempted to evolve their style, but against teams like City, tactical flexibility becomes essential.
Nicol’s comments echo the frustration of fans who watched their team fail to string together more than a few passes at a time, allowing City to dictate the tempo with little resistance.
“When you can’t put three or four passes together against a team like City, you’re never going to get hold of the ball,” Nicol concluded. “They’ll keep it, they’ll tire you out, and eventually they’ll punish you. That’s exactly what happened.”
The defeat leaves Liverpool facing an uphill battle to stay in the title race. While there’s no shame in losing to a side as talented as Manchester City, the manner of the performance will concern Slot.
His refusal to adjust tactically when City’s dominance was clear only compounded Liverpool’s problems. The fans, who have grown used to seeing a resilient and adaptive team, will now be hoping that this humbling defeat serves as a wake-up call.
Liverpool’s challenge moving forward will be to rediscover their intensity and tactical sharpness. For now, though, the 3-0 scoreline stands as a stark reminder of how far they must go to close the gap on a City side that remains the benchmark for excellence in English football.
