Yahoo Sports Trent Alexander-Arnold silences doubters when it matters most to earn Liverpool point at Man City
A finger raised to his lips in front of the Manchester City fans, Trent Alexander-Arnold might just have been lost in the moment, or perhaps he was making a more profound point that, for all the debate around his merits, it is days like these that ultimately count.
This was the goal that finally ended a winning City run at the Etihad that has lasted all year. Whatever space Alexander-Arnold might have left behind him on Liverpool’s right side, it mattered not for Jurgen Klopp when his great hybrid footballer galloped into position with 10 minutes left to change the course of the game.
If it felt like this Liverpool goal came from nowhere in more ways than one, then perhaps it is because Alexander-Arnold is the man with no fixed position. One moment chasing back into the right-back position, then the next advancing to score the goal that would earn a point against the best team in Europe. Indeed, in the space of a few seconds Liverpool survived yet another incursion down their right side before turning it into the decisive attack.
The double-deployment of Alexander-Arnold has been Klopp’s gamble – and it paid out on this occasion. This was the 24th game the all-conquering, treble-winning City have played at the Etihad in 2023 and the first that they have not won, so even this draw, with Liverpool under fire at the end, felt significant.
City turned the screw, as only they can, and that Alexander-Arnold goal on 80 minutes arrived just as a familiar home win looked about to be resolved. The City winger Jeremy Doku was the game’s outstanding attacking player and he danced into the Liverpool area from the left wing so many times that eventually the second goal seemed inevitable. Pep Guardiola would rhapsodise later about his team’s performance, and it can be difficult to argue.
They are a formidable team, who can dismantle a defence in a moment – as indeed they did when Alisson’s sliced kick out fell at the feet of Nathan Ake on 26 minutes. This was prime City, seizing upon a vulnerability and then activating Erling Haaland. His 50th City goal in 48 appearances was taken with brutal efficiency and for the rest Liverpool just had to live with him.
At the very least, the draw hauls City back into the Premier League leading pack as the Christmas run approaches and the title race becomes more interesting. Even Klopp could not deny that if one team should have won then it would not have been his own – and yet City never quite grasped the chance. They should have been given the winner on 68 minutes when Alisson flapped at a cross and Ruben Dias stroked it in at the back post.
On the replay, it was hard to find much wrong with the foul that was given by the on-field referee Chris Kavanagh – a soft right hand from Manuel Akanji on the left arm of the Brazilian goalkeeper. In days past that would have been considered no more aggressive than a post-match handshake. Under the current law, the fairest thing to say was that the on-field decision of foul did not quite reach the threshold of a clear and obvious error. Yet if Kavanagh had not given a foul there is no chance that Var Stuart Attwell would have sent his colleague to the screen for a review.
City should have won on that basis and Guardiola was remarkably phlegmatic that they did not. He said he did not watch it back before his post-match press conference and then added that “after the Newcastle-Arsenal action, I don’t know”. Which suggested that he knew exactly what happened but had chosen not to engage on this occasion.
There was a shouting match at the end of the game between Guardiola and Darwin Nunez, which Klopp explained had nothing to do with any historic rivalry “because Darwin knows nothing about that”. By the time he arrived for the post-match analysis, Guardiola was effusive about his team’s performance.
This was a lengthy Guardiola monologue on the details of the game – how Akanji and Rodri operated in “ridiculous spaces” and Ake and Kyle Walker were perfectly positioned to stop the counterattacking of Mohamed Salah in particular. “Everything was really high standards,” he said. “After eight years winning what we won, performing against Liverpool in that way.” Jack Grealish was taken ill overnight and not in the squad. John Stones was still not judged to be strong enough to start.
Guardiola picked a defence that switched from three in possession to four when Liverpool had the ball and Akanji dropped back. Somehow Alexander-Arnold and Dominic Szoboszlai never quite got to the ball when Ake was gifted it by Alisson’s kick. That was enough to open the door for Haaland’s left-foot finish. Alisson finished the game, like Diogo Jota, with an injury. The seriousness of which was unspecified but after a long high-pressure international break with Brazil, the great Premier League goalkeeper of the era looked off his game.
Before Alexander-Arnold scored, it had looked like the game was slipping away from Liverpool. Salah had been severely restricted by City and Klopp had sent on Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo to try to change the dynamic. It was Salah in the end who held the ball long enough for Alexander-Arnold to get into position and drill in the kind of shot that few would have been able to hit with that accuracy, under that pressure.
In time added on at the end, Haaland flicked a header inches wide. It was nothing short of a hurricane in those closing moments for Liverpool and yet hang on they did. They were once a lot closer to City, although after last season this feels like a step back towards those days. “We didn’t pass the test,” Klopp would say later. “But we passed a test.”
Manchester City vs Liverpool: As it happened...
03:23 PM GMT
That's all for today
Klopp sounds happier with the result, Guardiola more satisfied with his team’s performance (although you never can gauge the sincerity of his post-match verdicts). City were the team’s dominant force statistically, but the game felt closer than those numbers suggest. City remain strong favourites for the title, but the race is hotting up nicely. Arsenal can go top with a win over Brentford, and you would anticipate the top three staying close to each other for at least the next few months.
03:18 PM GMT
Guardiola on urging the City fans to make some noise
Some more noise. It’s 12.30. Maybe we have to play better to encourage them to make a little bit more (noise).
03:16 PM GMT
Klopp believes Liverpool have gears to find
It is a really good moment, it is a tough place to come. You have to be ready to suffer. You really would need more time to prepare for a game like this properly. We are still in a process. I think if we played really good today we could have won, we didn’t. We played okay.
03:07 PM GMT
Guardiola on City's performance
That was an excellent performance. I am really proud that after eight years we are still playing that way. We were really good in all departments and needed to be against an incredible team.
Maybe we missed the last pass a little bit but they defended really well. To concede just two shots on target against Liverpool is a big compliment for the way we work.
02:46 PM GMT
Van Dijk and Guardiola hand in hand
02:39 PM GMT
Alexander-Arnold thinks Liverpool could have played better
It’s a better result than last year, we haven’t had too many in good results here in general. We take the point, it was not an amazing performance from us at all. But we take the point.
I don’t think we played that well, especially in their first half when their shape caused us problems.
We came out in the second half, with an idea to press them. It’s always hard when you respect a team like City, it always feels like you stand off that extra yard.
02:35 PM GMT
There was some aggro after the full-time whistle
It looked like Darwin Nunez was trying to have a quiet word with Pep Guardiola, but his manager stepped in. Mostly all smiles between Guardiola and Klopp as they exchanged views...
02:30 PM GMT
FT: Man City 1 Liverpool 1
A much better result for Liverpool, and a fair scoreline on the day. Alexander-Arnold was tasked with playing against Doku and questioned before the match, but responded with a fantastic goal and all-round performance. Alisson looked short of his best all day and could have lost it for Liverpool, and City finished the stronger.
As Klopp said before the break, it was a shame to have this game in the early kick-off slot after an international break. Both teams looked goosed in the second half, and a number of individuals short of their best.
02:27 PM GMT
98 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 1
Alisson going down adds another 30 seconds to the clock, and Liverpool have one final attack. The ball is chipped in towards Diaz in the box, but he heads straight up into the head of Alisson.
02:25 PM GMT
97 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 1
Alisson with a pair of terrible passes from his own penalty area, not for the first time today, and he then goes down holding his hamstring.
City have a corner in the last minute, and the Liverpool goalkeeper is going to have to hobble on one leg and do his best.
Haaland gets there first at the near post, and his flick-on flashes beyond the near post! There was no blue shirt there to score what surely would have been the winner.
02:23 PM GMT
95 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 1
Very important block from Matip after Bernardo Silva swept a volley towards goal! City looking the more dangerous now, but Doku fails to find the right pass in the box. Liverpool struggling to get out, but Foden lets them off with a cross that floats behind.
02:20 PM GMT
93 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 1
Doku with another mazy, through the middle of the pitch this time, and Endo hacks him down at the expense of a yellow. Kavanagh thought about playing advantage but blew his whistle in the end. City waste the free-kick.
02:18 PM GMT
90 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 1
Like a fair chunk of this second half, the game has gone a little scrappy. City have barely allowed Liverpool into their half since conceding.
There will be EIGHT minutes of stoppage time to play though.
Alexander-Arnold does well to stay on his feet up against Doku.
02:15 PM GMT
87 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 1
When Liverpool scored, I thought they might be in the stronger state to push for a winner, but City have rallied. Doku with another slalom, which wins a free-kick, and City keep the pressure on with the corner. Alisson claims under pressure from Akanji again and carries it over the line, but this one was a more obvious foul.
02:12 PM GMT
85 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 1
Klopp making a double change which perhaps says he is happy with a point: Nunez and Mac Allister are the players coming off, Endo and Harvey Elliott replace them. The Liverpool manager does not want this game to see-saw in the closing stages.
No subs from Guardiola, from a bench that has two goalkeepers.
02:11 PM GMT
83 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 1
Could we have a winner? Liverpool have more attackers on the pitch, but City have a free-kick in a shooting position after a foul on Akanji. The stadium holds its breathe as Álvarez approaches the ball, but his cannot lift his shot over the wall.
02:09 PM GMT
GOOOOAAALLL! Alexander-Arnold levels
Alexander-Arnold has been Liverpool’s best player and he has just scored a wonderful equaliser. Diaz’s cross was heavy and the danger looked to have gone, but a decoy run from Gakp opened up some space for the Liverpool right-back to receive the ball in a slightly more central position. He killed the ball with his first touch, and then fired an unerring finish across Ederson from the edge of the box.
02:07 PM GMT
79 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Liverpool with a really threatening situation on the break, with Diaz chopping inside from the left. Salah was wide open on the right and a simple, lofted pass was all that was required, but he could not get it passed Dias.
02:05 PM GMT
77 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
A coming together between Diaz and Foden, which the referee was struggling to see between bodies. Diaz caught Foden in the face with his hand, but there was no force or malice behind it. Just a foul and no card, the right decision. Liverpool have lost their way a bit after a strong start to the half.
02:02 PM GMT
74 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Klopp has rolled the dice again, with Cody Gakpo replacing Szoboszlai. Nunez has picked up a yellow card, the first one of the game, for clipping Foden as the City winger carried the ball forward.
02:00 PM GMT
71 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Nunez with another glimpse of goal, but Ederson tips his shot from a tight angle around the post before catching the resulting corner. The City goalkeeper has been excellent, and much better than his compatriot Alisson. In many respects, those two are the difference between the teams today.
01:57 PM GMT
68 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
City have not been at their best in this game, but some of their play out of their own defensive third through the Liverpool press has still been excellent. On this occasion, it was Bernardo dropping in to help them play out.
Then City thought they had a second goal via a corner! Akanji jumped alongside Alisson, who failed to make clean contact and Dias was on hand to finish into the unguarded net.
Referee Chris Kavanagh gave the foul, and Var backed him up. I think Alisson is fortunate there, it was no more than one hand on the shoulder.
01:54 PM GMT
65 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Man City and Rodri screaming for a penalty for handball, but Rodri’s shot was blocked by the backside of Matip. Nowhere close to being a penalty, a speculative, Stuart Broad-like appeal from City.
01:51 PM GMT
63 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Too easy for City to play through Liverpool’s midfield there with Akanji finding Alvarez between the lines, but Foden’s clipped cross found neither Haaland nor Doku. Foden asks why his opposite winger was not arriving at the back post.
01:49 PM GMT
61 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
City still carry a threat when they do get forward, but I think Liverpool look the fresher and stronger team physically at the moment. Szoboszlai teases a wonderful cross towards Nunez which Dias has to turn behind on the stretch. Matip’s header is tame and straight at Ederson. A good spell for Liverpool, this.
01:47 PM GMT
59 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
A burst forward from Walker goes untracked, but Foden’s shot is blocked by Matip. The flag was up for offside against City in any case.
Liverpool go back on the attack, and Nunez wins a corner. Ake is furious, saying he hooked the ball back off the Liverpool striker and the replays show he has a point. Should have been a goal kick, but City survive.
01:45 PM GMT
57 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Alexander-Arnold has been outstanding with the ball, and another well-placed hook forward enables Salah to win a corner. If Liverpool score, it feels like it will come from down that right flank.
Doku then leads a City counter after a couple of tricks, but Liverpool slow the move down by sprinting back in numbers.
01:43 PM GMT
Diaz's father is at the Etihad
Luis Diaz’s father is in attendance at the Etihad! Happy to see him safe in the UK. pic.twitter.com/M7CDzqyvg1
— Anything Liverpool (@AnythingLFC_) November 25, 2023
01:42 PM GMT
Guardiola not comfortable
It seems as if Pep Guardiola is far from enamoured with Julian Alvarez’s performance. Twice he has turned on his heels in disgust, with the Argentine tangling his feet horribly to squander two promising attacking positions late in the first half. If this is the perfectionism required in the bitter City-Liverpool rivalry, heaven knows what Jurgen Klopp has made of Alisson’s contribution so far.
01:42 PM GMT
55 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Jota is down with an injury, and it looks like Klopp is using that as an opportunity to make a double change. Gravenberch and Diaz have come on for Jota and Jones. That makes some sense - Liverpool’s left side has not threatened to the same degree as the right.
01:40 PM GMT
53 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Ederson claims the City corner, and the home team threaten on the break. Doku has too many gears for Mac Allister, who thought about taking the booking by dragging him down, and the winger picked out Foden with the cut-back who skewed over the bar when he really should have hit the target. City’s best moment of the half.
01:39 PM GMT
52 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Trent Alexander-Arnold cuts out a square Bernardo pass, and Liverpool win a corner to stay on the front foot. Guardiola is down on his haunches on the touchline, scratching his chin. If there was any illness in the City camp, could that show up in the second half?
01:38 PM GMT
49 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Mac Allister does well to hold the ball under pressure in midfield, and win a free-kick from Haaland. The atmospshere in the sounds fairly quiet. Akanji heads the free-kick away.
Alexander-Arnold then finds Salah with another one of those long clearances which is really a glorious pass, bit City defend their penalty area well.
01:35 PM GMT
47 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
City enjoying some possession in the Liverpool half in the opening exchanges, but it ends after a sloppy pass is played to Ake’s weaker right side. Matip shows real poise to sell Haaland a dummy, and Liverpool have their turn to keep the ball. This iteration of Klopp’s team puts much more emphasis on building up play from deep, it is a more technical team.
01:33 PM GMT
We are back under way!
Liverpool did very little wrong in that first half, this is in the balance going into the second half.
01:29 PM GMT
Haaland the fastest to 50
01:25 PM GMT
Watching the City goal back...
I think I underplayed Nathan Ake’s assist a little, he did very well to skip through a couple of challenges before playing the pass, although Klopp will have wanted his team to be stronger.
01:19 PM GMT
HT: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
City lead through Haaland’s goal, but the advantage is a narrow one. As ever, the home team have produced some fabulous passages of play, many of which have started from Ederson. But Liverpool have show plenty of personality themselves, flooding forward in numbers and keeping City honest with their speed in behind. Nunez has had a couple of half-chances, and Liverpool fans will want him to be neater.
01:16 PM GMT
45 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Another slightly edgy moment at the back for City, with Ederson palming Szoboszlai’s mishit shot back towards danger rather than just holding on to it. Liverpool are still alive in this contest.
01:15 PM GMT
44 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
That is outrageous from Ederson, fizzing a 40-yard pass into Bernardo which takes Liverpool’s midfield completely out of the game. Foden takes the ball on towards the edge of the area, and Alisson does well to tip his low shot around the post. City are penalised for a foul from the resulting corner.
01:13 PM GMT
42 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Alexander-Arnold inventive on the ball again, feeding the ball into Salah, but Nunez went too early with his run and was flagged offside.
Liverpool keep the pressure on though, and Szoboszlai floats a really threatening cross across the face of goal.
Then City almost expose Liverpool’s shortage of numbers at the other end after a delicious flick forward from Bernardo, but Alvarez could not pick out Haaland on the run.
The game has gone a little basketball, which will please neither manager.
01:09 PM GMT
Haaland reaches another milestone
And No. 50 it is. Nathan Ake probably could not have believed how easy it was to amble past Alexander-Arnold and Szoboszlai to find Haaland, who took the half a yard of space Matip afforded him to hit low into the far corner. Alisson got a touch but could not keep it out.
01:08 PM GMT
37 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Foden almost played Alvarez into the penalty area, but the forward’s touch let him down. Shortly before that, Liverpool won the ball in a dangerous position but the angle was too narrow for Nunez. Gasps from the crowd as Ederson threads a pass through four Liverpool players and Bernardo flicks the ball to Doku. Brilliant, but high risk, football.
01:04 PM GMT
33 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Doku putting Liverpool fans on edge again, this time by skipping inside and shooting just wide with the aid of a Liverpool deflection.
Then Alexander-Arnold sweeps a pass forward for Nunez, and Liverpool’s front three have City’s back three isolated. There was time and space for Nunez to shoot from just outside the box, but he played the square pass to Salah and Ake did well to slow him down and get a foot in.
Alexander-Arnold then does well to win Liverpool a corner, which City defender. The Liverpool right-back has started this game strongly.
01:01 PM GMT
30 minutes: Man City 1 Liverpool 0
Liverpool are pressing in search of an immediate reply, and do look as if they have a goal in them.
City played through them there though, with Ederson attracting Salah and then finding Rodri at the edge of the box, who turned and passed to Bernardo. That kind of thing is soul destroying when you feel like you are putting City under pressure.
12:58 PM GMT
GOOOOOAAALL! Haaland scores his 50th Premier League goal
That goal comes from a poor kick from Alisson. He was looking for the big sidewinder to set Salah away on the break, but completely slicked it. City won the loose ball and, with Liverpool out of shape, it was simple for Ake to find the run of Haaland who finishes low into the far corner across the goalkeeper from just inside the box. 50 Premier League goals in 48 games.
12:57 PM GMT
26 minutes: City 0 Liverpool 0
No question that Doku is City’s danger man at the moment. He is so difficult to contain once he turns to face the penalty area, but Liverpool narrow quickly and converge on Rodri to stop him getting a shot away. City win successive corners. They try to work a 3v2 with a short one, but Foden’s shot is blocked and easy for Alisson.
Interesting, nip and tuck first 25 minutes. There have been shades of Anfield February 2021 in the way Alisson has started the game. An awful pass straight to Foden gifted the City midfielder a chance he squandered and a heavy touch from an admittedly poor Jones back pass almost allowed Haaland in.
12:54 PM GMT
23 minutes: City 0 Liverpool 0
Superb wing play from Doku, bringing Alexander-Arnold to a standstill before beating him on the outside. The ball across the box is dangerous, but Alisson gets a hand to it and the ball bounces away from danger. Then Liverpool threaten on the break, before Alvarez fouls Salah. The City forward is perhaps fortunate not to receive a booking.
12:51 PM GMT
20 minutes: City 0 Liverpool 0
Ederson let the ball run across his own goalline in this fixture a couple of seasons ago, and Alisson had a very similar moment there! Jones played the ball back to his goalkeeper inside the Liverpool penalty area, and Haaland was very close to getting studs to the ball and embarrassing the goalkeeper as he passed out. Liverpool turned that scare into an advantageous attack at the other end, but Szoboszlai’s shot was blocked.
12:48 PM GMT
17 minutes: City 0 Liverpool 0
Nunez threatening again, but his first touch let him down when he looked to be in behind the City centre-backs. He may have been offside anyway, but tighter control there and he would have been bearing down on Ederson. Liverpool brighter in the last few minutes, some tension building inside the Etihad.
12:46 PM GMT
15 minutes: City 0 Liverpool 0
Liverpool get themselves up the pitch after Alexander-Arnold lifts a long pass forward for Salah to chase. Ake defenders well but at the expense of a throw in the City half.
The away team keep the ball patiently, but Matip injects some life into the attack with a dribble through midfield. He spreads play to Salah, who lofts a cross in towards Nunez who tests Ederson with a glancing header. Half a chance for the striker.
12:44 PM GMT
13 minutes: City 0 Liverpool 0
Very nearly the perfect through ball into Haaland’s path from Alavrez, but it evades the striker’s run. City are currently able to play through the thirds quite comfortably, even in central areas.
Liverpool are back on the ball though, but Matip runs into trouble. Douku lifts a cross into the area but Tsimikas was alert at the back post to head clear.
12:41 PM GMT
10 minutes: City 0 Liverpool 0
City with a sustained spell of possession, but Liverpool keeping their shape deep in their own half. Akanji is going into midfield, but unlike Stones is playing to the left of the Spaniard rather than the right when City have have the ball.
That’s a scare for Liverpool though! Alisson tried to squeeze a pass beyond Foden to Tsimikas, but the City player cut it out on the edge of the box only to shoot straight the goalkeeper.
12:38 PM GMT
7 minutes: City 0 Liverpool 0
The game is starting to settle into a more sedate rhythm, both teams are moving the ball deliberately from the back.
City work a triangle through midfield with Akanji popping the ball around the corner into Bernardo. Alexander-Arnold stuck with the run of Haaland though, and Liverpool mopped up after the striker flicked the ball into Doku’s path.
12:35 PM GMT
Haaland closing in on 50 Premier League goals
So can Haaland become the fastest player to 50 Premier League goals today? He’s on 49, a tally reached in just 47 games. The current fastest to 50 is Andy Cole, who hit that total in 65 games. Haaland has 69 goals in 71 matches all told for City. There were a few doubts in the week about his fitness but he leads the line here and Guardiola will hope his goal machine is on target again.
12:34 PM GMT
4 minutes: Man City 0 Liverpool 0
Liverpool gave a free-kick near halfway after Bernardo leans into Mac Allister can causes him to tip over while going up for a header.
The visitors then produced some slick, composed football through the City press, all the way from Alisson. Unfortunately for them, Jones’ pass let him down in a promising position. That passage of play will encourage Klopp, though.
12:32 PM GMT
2 minutes: Man City 0 Liverpool 0
Really lively start to the game. City causing problems down their left through Doku and Bernardo, who both deliver low crosses into the box towards Haaland which Liverpool manage to clear. That could well be a sign of things to come for Liverpool in wide areas.
12:30 PM GMT
KICK OFF!
City get the game started. Rodri was caught on the ball in the first few seconds, but Walker cut out Salah’s forward pass.
12:28 PM GMT
The players are on their way out of the tunnel
One of those games for which fans make sure they are in their seats well ahead of time. No toddling in from the concourse five minutes into the game after one last pint. Sometimes these early kick-offs can be sleepy, but that might suit an away team at the Etihad.
12:17 PM GMT
No surprise that Erling Haaland is fit to start despite his international break niggle
12:16 PM GMT
It takes all kinds...
12:11 PM GMT
The man who will have Guardiola fretting
Salah has scored 198 goals in all competitions for Liverpool, and would be the fifth player to reach 200 for the club after Ian Rush, Roger Hunt, Gordon Hodgson and Billy Liddell. He’s scored 11 goals against Man City (only scoring more against Manchester United, 12), which is the highest amount any player has scored against sides managed by Pep Guardiola.
12:06 PM GMT
Here's one he made earlier...
12:02 PM GMT
Guardiola on the Liverpool rivalry
We both compete for Premier Leagues, our games have been so, so tight, many times. The quality of the manager, Liverpool itself, the players - it’s there.
With all due respect to Liverpool, we’ve prepared the same way. Both teams want to attack, the transitions are unbelievable. I think it’ll be an attractive game, as it has been in the past years.
If you sit deep, they have a lot of passes. They have good deliveries from Trent Alexander-Arnold and Kostas Tsimikas. Liverpool are a team that are built to run and attack the box quickly.
11:45 AM GMT
More from Klopp on what to expect from Liverpool
A little bit of what Chelsea did when they were super aggressive and unpredictable.
Everyone who pressed made the final step, these kinds of things. The respect they create, the threat they are, it holds you back from time to time because nobody wants to look silly.
11:43 AM GMT
Klopp interesting on the need for City to show courage on the ball
We had a lot of games where we defended quite well to a certain point, but the only way you can hurt City is with your own possession. If you look back on the goals we have scored against City, they are real team goals. We keep the ball for around a minute, which is something that City are not used to. We have a midfield that is more suited to that.
Against the best teams in the world, you have to play football because that’s the one part of the game they are not used to.
11:37 AM GMT
Guardiola says Jack Grealish is out through illness...
It sounds like he might not have been the only City player struggling with a vomiting bug but Guardiola says his team “will adapt and play with XI.”
11:36 AM GMT
Liverpool team news: Tsimikas preferred at left-back, Nunez starts up front
A couple of big defensive calls from Klopp with Konate and Gomez sat on the bench. Foden and Doku might well be licking their lips at the sight of Alexander-Arnold and Tsimikas. This looks a perfect game for Darwin Nunez though, given City will not take a backward step and will offer space in behind. That’s probably Liverpool’s best midfield three but does it offer enough protection?
Liverpool XI: Alisson; Alexander-Arnold, Matip, Van Dijk, Tsimikas; Mac Allister, Szoboszlai, Jones; Salah, Nunez, Jota
Subs: Gomez, Endo, Konate, Diaz, Gakpo, Elliott, Gravenberch, Kelleher, Quansah.
11:33 AM GMT
Man City team news: Ake in for Gvardiol, Stones fit enough for bench
Nathan Ake replaces Josko Gvardiol at left-back, and the Dutchman has a job of work in front of him to keep a lid on Mohamed Salah. Other than that, it is the same City team that drew 4-4 at Chelsea. John Stones fit enough for the bench, beaning Akanji will be asked to shift into midfield.
Today's City line-up! 🩵
XI | Ederson, Walker (C), Akanji, Dias, Ake, Rodrigo, Bernardo, Foden, Doku, Alvarez, Haaland
SUBS | Ortega Moreno, Carson, Phillips, Stones, Gomez, Gvardiol, Bobb, Lewis#ManCity | @etihad pic.twitter.com/jAF25wro6C— Manchester City (@ManCity) November 25, 2023
11:30 AM GMT
The Liverpool-City rivarly
Until Liverpool dropped away last season and Arsenal became City’s closest challengers, these were the best teams in Europe for three to four seasons.
Judged by quality of football, this rivalry has produced some of the Premier League’s best ever games, although it has been said to lack the antagonism of the Arsenal vs Manchester United duels of old.
As Chief Sports Writer Oliver Brown explores, there is a risk of underestimating the needle between City and Liverpool - on the pitch, in the boardroom and in the stands.
11:23 AM GMT
Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson on the game
Coming here to play against Man City, they are one of the best teams in the world. Nothing much different from their side, but for us it is a new challenge. We have a few players who are coming here for the first time, and when it is new you sometimes don’t know what to expect.
11:17 AM GMT
The importance of Trent Alexander-Arnold
Telegraph Sport columnist Jamie Carragher has taken a look at the role Trent Alexander-Arnold will play today.
This fixture last season, when Liverpool were beaten 4-1, was the game that prompted Jurgen Klopp to tuck his right-back into midfield positions with the ball, with Andy Robertson also being more reserved at times.
With Alexander-Arnold alongside the holding midfielder, it gives Liverpool a 3-2 shape at the base of the team to guard against the counter-attack.
His passing can pick out runners from deep, although there are times when he seems to lack a midfielder’s special awareness in tight spaces. It will be interesting to see if Man City try to crowd him.
11:12 AM GMT
Best betting offers and free bets
Who are you backing in the best match up of the season? Get behind your fancy with these best betting offers and free bets.
11:09 AM GMT
Gary Neville on City's form
I’m not surprised that there’s been a few wobbles and they look more vulnerable, but I think that’s normal. I think if after a Treble you offered them being top after 12 games going into this part of the season with the Champions League falling away, I think they’d be happy with it.
10:55 AM GMT
Clash of the titans: Manchester City vs Liverpool
Just two points separate the Premier League’s top four (see table below) as top flight football resumes after the international break, and this game between Manchester City and Liverpool can set the tone for what is to follow.
With no interruptions until mid-March, this period promises to shape the title race. Pep Guardiola’s team are odds-on favourites, but the next few months will reveal whether Liverpool, Arsenal or the pair of them will be City’s closest challengers.
Jürgen Klopp was unhappy with such a big fixture being given the Saturday lunchtime slot, but there are reasons for Liverpool to be optimistic. They sit just one point behind City, but have amassed more expected goals and shots per game. Liverpool could well have the division’s most potent attack, with Mohamed Salah producing goals and assists at a frightening rate and Darwin Núñez training on from his debut season. The numbers say they are more porous than City though, and a midfield short of a high-class No 6 faces a stern test at the Etihad. Liverpool have won just one of their last eight league visits to City.
There was a small injury scare for Erling Haaland over the international break, but the City striker is expected to be available. Striking the right balance in midfield could be key for Guardiola. They were too blunt at Arsenal but too porous at Chelsea, when a team featuring Haaland, Julián Álvarez, Phil Foden and Jeremy Doku was cut apart.
City will be hoping John Stones is fit again. Their 4-1 victory in this fixture last season was one of the first occasions they deployed Stones in a midfield role alongside Rodri, in something like a 3-2-4-1 shape. Guardiola has asked Manuel Akanji to perform the same function, but there is no doubt that Stones is the more suited to it.
Full team news on the way shortly.
