Liverpool blew Manchester City away on Wednesday, putting one foot in the UEFA Champions league semi-finals as they comprehensively beat the Premier League leaders 3-0 in the first leg of their quarter-final at Anfield on Wednesday night.
Familiar suspect Mohamed Salah, who else, opened the scoring in the 12th minute and City never truly recovered as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain scored a scorcher to double the hosts’ lead before Sadio Mane got in on the act with a close-ranger header all with just 31 minutes on the clock.
Past clashes between the two have been veritable goalfests and while the Kop urged their beloved Reds to go on to pile on the visitors’ misery, there weren’t to be any more goals in the tie.
A resounding win for Jurgen Klopp’s men, who are on the verge of reaching the last-four and here are the five main talking points from an exhilarating continental tie at Anfield:
Hostile atmosphere unsettles Pep Guardiola’s side?
While it can’t be an excuse, City clearly looked like a team rattled in the first-half after their team bus had been bombarded with missiles from the Liverpool fans as they arrived at Anfield.
Sure, the Reds faithful didn’t cover themselves in glory with their pre-match antics, but their intimidation tactics appeared to have worked as the previously irrepressible Sky Blues were blown away with little over half an hour on the clock.
The Citizens did begin to grow back into the game but it was always going to be an uphill battle against the rapacious hosts, who just wanted to see the back of the net bulge time and again.
It’s not a stretch to say that the opening thirty minutes of this 180-minute(unless it goes to penalties) tie may just prove to be the most crucial and they belonged to the Reds from Merseyside, thanks in some part to their boisterous fans and majorly to their rock-and-roll brand of football.
Aymeric Laporte vs Mohamed Salah: Egyptian wins mini-battle hands down
Considering Mohamed Salah’s sensational form this season, arguably any left-back in the world would have a tough time marking the Reds winger.
Aymeric Larporte, primarily a centre-back, had the unenviable job of shadowing the African at Anfield and it must have been one red blur for the Spaniard, for he struggled to keep tabs with Liverpool’s No.11.
Thankfully for Laporte and City, Salah was forced off early in the second-half, otherwise one shudders what kind of havoc the Egyptian could have wreaked had he completed the 90 minutes.
Laporte’s a fine defender and while City have done fine without Benjamin Mendy, they need a proper fullback, at the very least, if they are to get positive results in games such as these.
Pep Guardiola may be loathe to admit it, but perhaps the Catalan tactician may see better results while employing a back-three, especially when taking on teams which possess attacking phenoms like Salah.
Sergio Aguero’s absence proves telling as Kevin De Bruyne, David Silva and Leroy Sane have rare off days
Gabriel Jesus, who turned 21 earlier this week, didn’t have the best of nights, but at least the Brazilian forward can say he was devoid of quality service.
With the likes of Leroy Sane, Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva all on the pitch, that may seem incredulous but nothing quite clicked for the Citizens’ trio on Wednesday.
Sergio Aguero, so often the scourge of Liverpool, wasn’t even in the match day squad due to a knee injury he suffered in March and City fans will be rueing the Argentine’s loss for the South American has that rare ability to change games in an instant.
Don’t miss: Early predictions for quarter-finals
As it was, Sane was probably the worsts of the bunch, not in sync with his teammates as he constantly chose the ‘wrong’ option whenever an oppurunitiy presented itself, much to the consternation of De Bruyne and Co.
De Bruyne and Silva, so often the effortless conductors looked out of sorts and with Raheem Sterling on the bench, there wasn’t anyone left who could lift the visitors out of the quagmire they found themselves in.
Reds make light of defensive injuries
After Joel Matip’s injury blow earlier in the week, Liverpool fans were worried their creaky defence might not be able to cope against City’s formidable attack.
And with Dejan Lovren the man likely to step in place of Matip, they had valid reason for their fears as the Croatian’s never quite looked like he’s going to make the grade at Anfield
However, thanks mostly to City’s off-colour attackers, Liverpool City at bay with ease.
Virgil van Dijk’s hefty fee was ridiculed across the world but the towering Dutchman seems to justify the £75 million fee each time he plays and has settled in fairly quickly in Merseyside.
While van Dijk and Lovren acquitted themselves well in the middle, it was the young duo. Andy Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold that truly shone. Robertson was a willing runner in attack, aided perhaps by the absence of Raheem Sterling on his flank and the Scot
Alexander-Arnold deserves a special mention for he managed to do what few have all season—keep Leroy Sane quiet. The German winger was well shackled throughout and perhaps hell win round two, but for now the English fullback will can go home feeling chuffed.
Jurgen Klopp’s got Pep Guardiola’s number
Pep Guardiola may not be as frosty with Jurgen Klopp as he is with, say, Jose Mourinho, but the Catalan must be simmering inside for yet another time the German’s beaten him at his own game.
With City running away with the Premier League title, it was Klopp’s Liverpool who took the game to City in an unforeseen maaner and emerged victorious in a seven-goal thriller.
It’s well-documented that Klopp managed to best Guardiola more often than not during their Bundesliga days and it seems the Catalan’s been unable to buck the trend while on English shores as well.
To put things into perspective, not only did City fail to score, they had just the one shot on goal.
It’s another thing to park the bus and stifle City but it’s another to take it to them and match them blow-for-blow.
Klopp’s ‘gegenpressing’ seems like the perfect counter-punch for Pep’s tiki-taka and he has less than a week to figure his opposite number out or risk getting knocked out of Europe.