Analysis: Liverpool

After their draw away at Chelsea, head coach Jurgen Klopp made just one change to his Liverpool side. Dejan Lovren was handed his first Premier League start of the season, replacing Trent Alexander-Arnold, as Joe Gomez moved across to right-back role in a familiar 4-3-3 structure.

With Manchester City insistent on building from goalkeeper Ederson, Liverpool pressed very high from the outset. The front three of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mo Salah would step high on to both central defenders and lone pivot Fernandinho. James Milner would then support his team’s high press if Bernardo Silva dropped deeper to create a double pivot in between his splitting centre-backs, reducing the Portugal international’s ability to turn and play out against the pressure. This press from the front unit intelligently blocked access between the visitors’ central defenders; right-back Kyle Walker was eventually forced to drop even deeper to provide an additional passing option for the centre-back in possession.

The hosts enjoyed the majority of play in the opening exchanges, as a result. Intense midfield pressing, coupled with the high positioning of Mane and Salah, created the opportunity for quick transitions forward into attack. The pressure that Firmino added in dropping into midfield also helped the Reds to regain the ball quickly, as Bernardo Silva and David Silva struggled in midfield against four pressing players. City weren’t without a response, though, and they soon started to find success in playing out from the back. Riyad Mahrez and Raheem Sterling would remain high to pin Liverpool’s full-backs, allowing Walker to receive in front or over the pressing forwards before moving the ball out of defence against minimal pressure.

Liverpool targeted Benjamin Mendy as a source of possession. The left-back frequently lost the ball through telegraphed passing into Fernandinho and David Silva, while his high positioning could be exploited by the speed and directness of Salah on the right. But for an assured first-half performance from Aymeric Laporte – who often came out on top in his one-on-one battles with Salah – the Reds might have posed more of a threat on the break.

Klopp’s players also favoured building from the goalkeeper, and they continued with this in the second half. With Sergio Aguero and David Silva forming a front two in City’s out-of-possession structure, the visitors struggled to effectively pressurise their opponents’ back line. As Gomez and Andy Robertson looked to move outside of the midfield block, Georginio Wijnaldum or Naby Keita (James Milner’s first-half replacement) could move into a false full-back role, helping to progress the ball around the front pairing with ease.

It was progressing the ball into the next line that Liverpool found difficult. They looked dangerous only when they had regained possession high through pressing. Mane and Firmino regularly dropped towards the ball from a high starting position, receiving between the lines after a switch of play. While City did leave gaps to play through when shifting across, the compactness between their units was consistently solid, affording Liverpool minimal time and space on the ball to progress further.

Gomez’s well-timed forward runs from right-back became a common outlet. Direct passing from Jordan Henderson and Wijnaldum to Gomez out wide enabled Salah to move inside earlier, where he found more space to receive and combine with the dropping Firmino. Salah could then receive back inside the right shoulder of Mendy before cutting across the full-back and driving on goal. City weren’t averse to committing tactical fouls to thwart the Liverpool threat on the right, leaving goalkeeper Ederson untroubled.

Daniel Sturridge replaced the tiring Firmino with just under 20 minutes remaining, but the in-form striker added little to his side’s attacking play. It was the visitors who could have won the three points in the closing stages, with Mahrez’s miss from the penalty spot five minutes from normal time the final opportunity for either side to break the deadlock. Despite possessing more of the ball in the second half, Liverpool simply couldn’t break their opponents’ compact and effective defensive block.