Pep Guardiola could not have wished for a better way to mark his 1,000th game in management as his Manchester City side cruised to a **3-0 victory**over reigning Premier League champions Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
Leading marksman Erling Haaland made amends for failing to convert an early penalty as he headed Man City in front just before the hour mark - his 14th Premier League goal of the season and his 99th in the division since joining the Citizens four summers ago.
Virgil van Dijk thought he has restored parity for Liverpool before half time, but his header was ruled out for offside, and City added insult to the Reds’ injury in first-half stoppage time when Nico Gonzalez's long-range strike deflected in off Van Dijk, wrong-footing goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili.
Jeremy Doku then put the game to bed with a moment of brilliance, curling a wonderful right-footed effort beyond Mamardashvili from outside the penalty area to cap an eye-catching man-of-the-match display from the Belgian.
Victory for Man City has seen them climb up to**second in the table** and move to within four points of leaders Arsenal, while Liverpool are down in eighth place and are eight points adrift of the Gunners after 11 matches.
Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at four key talking points from a memorable Premier League encounter between Man City and Liverpool.
Manchester City's Pep Guardiola on September 14, 2025
Man City, not Liverpool, are Arsenal’s biggest title challengers
After three successive years finishing second in the Premier League, Arsenal have made a strong start to the current campaign and, for now at least, Mikel Arteta’s men are the hunted rather than the hunters in the title race.
The Gunners are considered by many as the favourites to lift this season’s top-flight trophy, but after dropping two points in a 2-2 draw at Sunderland on Saturday, the door was suddenly ajar, allowing either Man City or Liverpool to take advantage of their minor slip-up.
It is fair to say that Man City have burst through that door in emphatic fashion, sending out a huge statement to Arsenal that they are their biggest rivals for the title, not this disjointed and wounded Liverpool outfit who were second best in every department at the Etihad.
After enduring a turbulent 2024-25 campaign, Guardiola believes that his Man City side “proved” they are ready to compete for the title again with their performance against Liverpool - and their form in recent months backs up the Catalan’s claim.
Since the start of April, Man City have accumulated the most Premier League points (45), winning 14 of their last 20 matches (D3 L3), and they have turned the Etihad in a fortress in that time, registering victories in 12 of their last 13 home games across all competitions, winning each of the last seven by at least two goals.
Man City’s performance against Liverpool was one full of energy, hunger, aggression and tempo to suggests that Guardiola and co have rediscovered their rhythm in the quest to return to the Premier League summit.
Manchester City's Jeremy Doku celebrates on November 9, 2025
Doku’s dazzling display his best in a Man City shirt
Since joining Man City for £55m from Rennes in the summer of 2023, Jeremy Doku has justifiably been accused of inconsistency and has lacked an end product in the final third, but the winger is now beginning to make his mark under Guardiola.
Doku has been one of Man City’s standout performers this season and his dazzling display against Liverpool on his 100th appearance for the club was arguably his best yet in a sky blue shirt, one worthy of his Man of the Match award.
One of the abiding memories of Man City’s 2-0 home defeat to Liverpool last season was how Doku targeted former Red Trent Alexander-Arnold, completing 15 dribbles which has only been bettered by one player in Premier League history since records began in 2003-04 (Adama Traore - 16).
Conor Bradley, fresh from his outstanding display against Vinicius Junior in the Champions League, was the latest Liverpool player to struggle with the trickery and speed of Doku, who has become the first player to score, win more than 10 duels, complete at least seven dribbles, create at least three chances, and have at least three shots on target in a single PL game since Eden Hazard for Chelsea in 2019.
Doku is one of only five players to have created 20+ chances in the Premier League this season (20) and it was the Belgian who typified the energy in Man City's performance against Liverpool. If he continues to deliver like this on a consistent basis, the sky is the limit for the 23-year-old.
Florian Wirtz of Liverpool in action on October 4, 2025
Wirtz disappoints once again for Liverpool
Florian Wirtz arrived at Liverpool for £116m in the summer after establishing himself as one of Europe’s brightest young playmakers at Bayer Leverkusen, but to the surprise of many, he is yet to live up to his hefty price tag.
The 22-year-old had shown miniscule signs of promise when operating on the left side of Liverpool’s attack and drifting inwards in recent matches, but he is struggling to make an impact in the Premier League and has now failed to score or assist in any of his 11 matches in England’s top tier.
Wirtz, who made zero key passes, lost possession nine times, did not complete a single cross and failed to win a single tackle across his 83 minutes on the pitch at the Etihad, looked lightweight and was unable to match the physicality of Man City throughout.
The Germany international, who allegedly turned down the chance to join Guardiola’s side in favour of signing for Liverpool, was on the receiving end of "What a waste of money" chants from the Etihad faithful as he walked off in disappointment, and not for the first time this season.
Liverpool head coach Arne Slot on October 29, 2025
Pressure mounting on Arne Slot after Liverpool’s latest setback
“It's been a very good start of the week with a very bad end of the week”. Those were the words of Arne Slot after watching his Liverpool side follow up promising performances in wins over Aston Villa and Real Madrid wit a damning defeat at Man City.
Liverpool will feel that luck deserted them at the Etihad, particularly in the first half, but nothing should be taken away from Man City’s dominant display and how poor the Reds were overall. Not only did Slot’s defence looked vulnerable yet again, their build-up was laboured and the energetic, aggressive press that defines City’s play was notably absent.
The concern for Liverpool is that this is not a one-off. These issues have crept into their performances on a regular basis this term, particularly their defensive frailties, and all this comes after the club forked out around £450m on new signings.
As we are only 11 games into the season, Liverpool’s latest setback is certainly not one that ends their hopes of retaining the Premier League title, but it is increasingly difficult to envisage the Reds mounting a serious challenge in their current state, and the pressure is building on Slot to find a swift solution.
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