Man City crush Liverpool 3-0 to cut gap with Premier League leaders Arsenal

Manchester City celebrated Pep Guardiola’s 1,000th crippled successful absorption with a connection 3-0 triumph implicit Liverpool to adjacent to wrong 4 points of Premier League leaders Arsenal.

Erling Haaland shrugged disconnected missing an aboriginal punishment connected Sunday to caput successful his 99th Premier League extremity earlier Nico Gonzalez’s deflected effort and a wonderment onslaught from Jeremy Doku confirmed City’s presumption arsenic Arsenal’s large rubric rivals.

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Liverpool person present mislaid 4 of their past 5 league games to permission the defending champions down successful eighth, 8 points disconnected the top.

Arsenal’s 10-game winning tally came to an extremity successful a 2-2 gully astatine Sunderland connected Saturday and Guardiola’s men took afloat vantage successful the conflict of the 2 sides that person dominated English football’s Premier League implicit the past decade.

Even if decisions went against Arne Slot’s men, this was different show of however acold they person fallen since cruising to a 2-0 triumph astatine the Etihad successful February.

The Reds showed signs of a revival successful beating Aston Villa and Real Madrid successful the past 8 days, but had nary reply to the slickness of a rejuvenated City, who person won 11 of their past 14 games successful each competitions.

Conor Bradley unopen down the menace of Madrid’s Vinicius Junior connected Tuesday, but was fixed a torrid clip by the gait and trickery of Doku down City’s left.

Early successful the archetypal half, Doku made the astir of Ibrahima Konate’s clearance disconnected Bradley to circular Giorgi Mamardashvili earlier his trailing limb was clipped by the Georgian goalkeeper.

Referee Chris Kavanagh was initially unmoved, but pointed to the spot aft a VAR review.

Haaland has struck 28 times already this play for nine and country, but has yet to people for City from the punishment spot successful 2025-26.

Mamardashvili redeemed himself by getting down debased to his near to crook the Norwegian’s punishment to information to concisely assistance the temper among the Liverpool players and travelling support.

City remained successful power of the game, though, arsenic Rayan Cherki’s effort was deflected wide earlier Mamardashvili turned Doku’s onslaught aft different mazy tally into the broadside netting.

Haaland has lone failed to people successful 2 of his 18 appearances this season, and duly delivered with a looping header to conscionable Matheus Nunes’s wicked transportation astatine 29 minutes.

Pep Guardiola marked his 1,000th crippled successful absorption successful benignant [Michael Regan/Getty Images]

Liverpool thought they were level 9 minutes later, erstwhile van Dijk’s header from a country arrowed into the acold corner.

However, Andrew Robertson ducked retired of the mode of his captain’s effort and was deemed to person interfered with Gianluigi Donnarumma from an offside position.

Instead of going successful each square, City rubbed brackish successful the wounds of Liverpool’s perceived injustice.

The visitors were dilatory to get retired from a corner, and Gonzalez had clip to instrumentality purpose earlier his changeable deflected disconnected van Dijk to wrong-foot Mamardashvili.

Liverpool lone had themselves to blasted for not getting backmost successful the crippled aboriginal successful the 2nd play arsenic Cody Gakpo blazed implicit with the extremity gaping astatine the extremity of a good determination involving Mohamed Salah and Bradley.

But Doku fittingly rounded disconnected arguably his champion show successful 3 seasons astatine City to seal a connection victory.

The Belgian jinked wrong the leaden-footed Konate earlier curling into the apical country from extracurricular the box.

Salah summed up Liverpool’s time and play truthful acold erstwhile helium dinked wide a glorious accidental 10 minutes from time.

Despite the visitors’ request for goals, Slot near 125-million-pound ($165m) striker Alexander Isak connected the seat for the full lucifer owed to his deficiency of lucifer fitness.

The determination to teardrop up the squad that coasted to the rubric with a adjacent 450-million-pound ($692m) walk successful the transportation model looks much misguided by the crippled arsenic Liverpool find themselves successful a conflict conscionable to marque the apical 4 alternatively than the rubric race.

After the game, Doku told Sky Sports that helium was precise blessed with the team’s performance.

“It is ever bully for the assurance [to predominate a match], but I person large players astir me. That gives maine the feeling that I person to bash much successful each crippled and each time I privation to improve,” helium said.

Van Dijk said Liverpool struggled to retrieve from a hard archetypal half.

“Our pressing conscionable wasn’t bully enough; it should person been better. We request to find much consistency. Losing hurts, always, but 3-0 especially,” helium said.

“There were immoderate bully moments successful the game, but you play Man City astatine home, who tin marque it precise difficult. The absorption should beryllium connected reflecting connected this erstwhile we travel backmost and past combat again.”

Earlier connected Sunday, Aston Villa thrashed Bournemouth 4-0 to determination into seventh spot successful the Premier League. But Newcastle United’s mediocre home signifier continued arsenic they slumped to decision astatine Brentford.

Nottingham Forest ended a winless Premier League tally stretching backmost to the archetypal play of the play arsenic they came from down to bushed Leeds United 3-1 astatine the City Ground.

Crystal Palace and Brighton and Hove Albion shared the spoils successful a dour 0-0 gully astatine Selhurst Park.