Erling Haaland found the one opening Liverpool could not afford at Anfield, turning a tight afternoon into another Manchester City statement and sending Enzo Maresca’s side to the top of the Premier League. Ryan Gravenberch’s dismissal changed the balance, and the Norwegian striker did what he has made a habit of doing in sky blue: smelled the moment, attacked it and decided the fixture.
Key takeaways
- Haaland’s decisive strike was his 170th goal in 206 appearances for Manchester City.
- The goal was also his ninth against Liverpool, one of the striker’s most frequent targets.
- City have taken 18 points from their opening six league matches under Maresca.
- Gravenberch was sent off before Haaland broke the deadlock at Anfield.
- Liverpool’s unbeaten Premier League run under Andoni Iraola ended after 23 matches.
Haaland settles a changing rivalry
For much of the contest, this had the feel of a scoreless draw between two sides still trying to establish themselves in a new version of an old Premier League feud. The familiar faces on the touchline were gone: this was the first league meeting between Liverpool and City without Jürgen Klopp or Pep Guardiola in either dugout since March 2015, when Brendan Rodgers’ Liverpool beat Manuel Pellegrini’s City 2-1.
Now it is Iraola against Maresca, and City’s new manager has begun at a pace that matches the club’s finest starts. Six wins from six equals the 18-point opening recorded under Guardiola in both 2016-17 and 2023-24.
Haaland’s arrival in 2022 for £60 million continues to look like one of football’s more absurd bargains. His father watched from the stands as the forward delivered another clinical finish at a ground where City’s leading man is rarely short of attention.
The match came in the first fixture following Manchester City’s finding of guilt, with an appeal and the final decision on any punishment still to come. Liverpool supporters made their feelings plain before kick-off, with banners inside and outside the stadium, merchandise around the ground referring to City’s alleged cheating, and a loud hostile reception for the visitors. City dealt with it calmly, while the travelling support’s banana-themed display became its own small sideshow.
Liverpool’s expensive wait goes on
Liverpool were already struggling to find their rhythm before Gravenberch’s red card left them with an uphill task. Iraola had gone 23 league matches without defeat, comprising 18 games with Bournemouth and five at Liverpool, but his new side have yet to properly get going.
There is particular scrutiny on a forward line reshaped at considerable cost. Liverpool paid £125 million for Florian Wirtz and a similar sum for Bradley Barcola, yet neither has delivered the influence expected of such investment. Barcola is newly arrived in English football and has time to settle; Wirtz, having been in the side longer, is drawing the sharper concern.
At Anfield, though, the difference was brutally simple. Liverpool spent heavily in search of match-winners. City already have one, and when the game loosened after the sending-off, Haaland made sure there was no doubt about it.
