Manchester City v Liverpool Live Commentary & Result, 01/04/2023, Premier League

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	+/-	PTS	Form
1	MCI Manchester City	37	28	5	4	94	32	+62	89	D W W W W
2	ARS Arsenal	37	25	6	6	83	43	+40	81	L L W W L
3	MUN Manchester United	37	22	6	9	56	42	+14	72	W W W L L
4	NEW Newcastle United	37	19	13	5	67	32	+35	70	D W D L W
5	LIV Liverpool	37	19	9	9	71	43	+28	66	D W W W W
6	BHA Brighton & Hove Albion	37	18	8	11	71	51	+20	62	D W L W L
7	AVL Aston Villa	37	17	7	13	49	45	+4	58	D W L L W
8	TOT Tottenham Hotspur	37	17	6	14	66	62	+4	57	L L W L D
9	BRE Brentford	37	14	14	9	57	46	+11	56	W W L W W
10	FUL Fulham	37	15	7	15	54	51	+3	52	D W W L L
11	CRY Crystal Palace	37	11	11	15	39	48	-9	44	D W L W L
12	CHE Chelsea	37	11	10	16	37	46	-9	43	L L D W L
13	WOL Wolverhampton Wanderers	37	11	8	18	31	53	-22	41	D L W L W
14	WHU West Ham United	37	11	7	19	41	53	-12	40	W L W L L
15	BOU AFC Bournemouth	37	11	6	20	37	70	-33	39	L L L W W
16	NFO Nottingham Forest	37	9	10	18	37	67	-30	37	W D W L W
17	EVE Everton	37	7	12	18	33	57	-24	33	D L W D L
18	LEI Leicester City	37	8	7	22	49	67	-18	31	D L L D D
19	LEE Leeds United	37	7	10	20	47	74	-27	31	L D L L D
20	SOU Southampton	37	6	6	25	32	69	-37	24	L L L L L

That's all for today, goodbye!

That win moves City five points behind leaders Arsenal, who will kick off shortly against Leeds United. They're now unbeaten in 11 in all competitions and travel to Southampton next weekend. That's back-to-back Premier League defeats for Liverpool, who remain seven points behind fourth place. They face Chelsea next in midweek.

City come from behind to beat Liverpool 4-1. Salah gave the Reds the lead in the first half, rifling into the top corner to finish off a quick counter-attack. Alvarez then pulled one back just 10 minutes later, reacting quickly to tap in Grealish's low cross. The second half belonged to City, with De Bruyne putting them ahead just 53 seconds after the restart. Gundogan pounced on Alvarez's blocked shot to pick out the top corner for their third before Grealish rounded it off with a curling finish into the far bottom corner.

90' + 4' FULL-TIME: MANCHESTER CITY 4-1 LIVERPOOL.

90' + 3' One last attack for City as Mahrez is picked out in space down the right again. He has two to aim for in the middle, but Van Dijk stands tall to block his cross and put it out for a corner, which comes to nothing.

90' + 1' Into three minutes of added time here, and Liverpool are enjoying a rare period of possession. Konate slides it forward to Firmino, but a loose touch from him gifts it straight back to the hosts.

C. Palmer

J. Grealish

89' Palmer has been waiting to come on for a long time, and it takes City winning a free-kick for play to pause. He comes on for Grealish.

87' Grealish's back heel to Gundogan takes a deflection off Konate to go behind him, but City keep it alive. Akanji comes forward to get involved and drives into the box, but scuffs at his shot, sending it trickling wide.

85' Every City pass is currently being treated to a cheer from the home fans as they knock it around in their own half. They're passing it through Liverpool with ease, and the visitors look more than ready for the final whistle.

Bernardo Silva

Rodri

83' City are using the opportunity to make their first change, with Silva coming on in place of Rodri.

J. Milner

C. Gakpo

82' Final change for Liverpool now as Gakpo is replaced by Milner.

82' GOOD SAVE! De Bruyne has switched out to the right and he hangs it up for Grealish at the far post. He watches it drop, hitting it sweetly on the volley, but Alisson gets behind it to deny him.

80' Following his assist for Grealish, De Bruyne has now assisted 99 Premier League goals, with only four players registering more assists in the competition's history.

78' City are still dominating possession here, and they're happy to just knock it around in front of Liverpool. At Klopp's insistence, his team start to press, but that just allows the hosts to move forward with some purpose.

76' Liverpool look out of ideas on how to break up City's play and Mahrez races forward down the right once more. He tries to pick out Gundogan this time, but he trips at the wrong moment and Van Dijk hooks it away.

K. De Bruyne

Assist

74' De Bruyne's run drags Konate out of position, leaving the space for Grealish through the middle when he returns the pass.

J. Grealish

Goal

74' GREALISH SCORES! It starts with another big switch of play, this time from Gundogan out to Grealish on the left. He plays a one-two with De Bruyne, which opens up the space for him to run into the box. He hits it first time, keeping it low, and rolling it past Alisson into the far bottom corner. 4-1 City!

72' Oxlade-Chamberlain sells himself as he slides in, and Grealish just takes it around him before switching it out to Mahrez. He whips in a cross this time, but Alisson punches it away.

A. Oxlade-Chamberlain

H. Elliott

70' And Oxlade-Chamberlain is also brought on for Elliott.

D. Núñez

Mohamed Salah

70' Salah is taken off and replaced by Firmino.

Roberto Firmino

Diogo Jota

70' Jota is also making way, with Firmino on in his place.

K. Tsimikas

A. Robertson

70' Liverpool are making a quadruple change here as they look to turn this game around. Robertson is the first to go off, with Tsimikas on for him.

68' Mahrez breezes past Robertson down the left once more and fizzes another low cross into the box. Van Dijk sticks out a leg to give away a corner, but it comes to nothing.

66' City are happy to just slow the pace of the game down a little bit here. They're still keeping Liverpool penned back in their own half, but they're not in any hurry to get into the box at the moment.

64' Gundogan has only score more Premier League goals against Aston Villa, West Brom and Tottenham (five each) than he has against Liverpool (four). All four goals have come in the second half of games, with this his first against them at the Etihad.

62' Van Dijk plays it back to Alisson, putting him under a lot of pressure with Alvarez quickly bearing down on him. The keeper stays calm though and turns past him before clearing his lines.

60' GREAT SAVE! City quickly work it upfield again, and Alvarez helps it out to Grealish on the left. He cuts inside, losing Alexander-Arnold before curling a shot towards the far post. At full stretch, Alisson tips it wide.

59' Alexander-Arnold's loose pass to De Bruyne is quickly won back by Fabinho, and he sets Robertson on the counter. He bursts down the left and has Salah in support, but he plays his low cross behind the forward.

57' City are dominating possession at the moment, though Liverpool are trying to press high upfield. They can't get though, and the hosts are in no hurry to move it forward.

55' CHANCE! Liverpool move it much quicker from the restart this time, and Henderson slides it through to Gakpo. He spins away from Akanji and has a go from a tight angle, but his shot bounces wide of the far post.

İ. Gündoğan

Goal

53' GUNDOGAN SCORES! Once again, City play it out to the right, where Mahrez is still getting a lot of joy. He tees up Alvarez with his low cross, but his first-time shot is blocked by Alexander-Arnold. He can only get it as far as Gundogan, who takes it into a pocket of space before firing into the near post. 3-1 City!

52' City break quickly on the counter again, with Gundogan spreading it out to Grealish on the left. He dinks a lovely cross to the near post for Gundogan, but his pull-back is caught by Alisson.

50' GREAT SAVE! Alexander-Arnold's free-kick is half-cleared by City, and he puts in a better cross when it comes back to him. Gakpo brings it down with a great first touch before spinning past Dias to have a shot. Ederson smothers it as the flag goes up.

48' Klopp is left shaking his head on the touchline, and Liverpool can't keep possession from the restart. That second goal looks to have rattled them.

R. Mahrez

Assist

46' It's a wonderful cross from Mahrez down the right, and the pace is what beats Alisson, leaving De Bruyne with a simple finish.

K. De Bruyne

Goal

46' DE BRUYNE SCORES! What a start to the second half by City! It's a great switch of play out to Mahrez by Alvarez and Robertson can't get close to him. He plays a wonderful cross into the box and Alisson gets fingertips on it, but can't stop it from reaching De Bruyne. He's left to slot it into the empty net. 2-1 City!

46' Liverpool get us back underway for the second half!

Guardiola will be pleased with how his side reacted to going behind, and they kept the pressure up right until half-time. He'll be looking for more of the same after the break. Klopp's side still got into some good positions though, and he'll want them to be more clinical when those opportunities do come up.

It's all square at the break, with City and Liverpool drawing 1-1. It was Liverpool that scored first, with Salah finishing off a great counter-attack by rifling it into the top corner. That seemed to spur City into life though, and the hosts came close through Mahrez before Alvarez tapped in Grealish's cross. Liverpool could've had a second as Salah broke quickly, but Grealish tracked back to stop him.

45' + 3' HALF-TIME: MANCHESTER CITY 1-1 LIVERPOOL.

45' + 1' CHANCE! Into two minutes of added time here and City have a corner which is swung in by Mahrez. He picks out Rodri, who is unmarked at the far post, but his volley hits the back of Akanji and bounces wide.

45' BLOCK! Liverpool are struggling to cope with the pace of City's counters, and Mahrez squares a great low cross into the box. Gundogan sets himself before drilling a shot on goal, but Fabinho throws himself in front of it to make the block.

43' Elliott threads it down the right for Salah, and he jinks back, losing Ake so he can pull it back to the youngster. He sees a shot blocked from the edge of the box, and a belated offside flag goes up against the Egyptian.

41' City are upping the pressure again here, with Gundogan and Grealish linking up well down the left. Both try to pick out a cross, but Liverpool are equal to it and clear their lines.

39' Grealish is on the floor once more, with Alexander-Arnold bringing him down for the second time in as many minutes. City have a free-kick down the left, and the Liverpool fans aren't happy with the decisions going to the hosts at the moment.

37' Salah is the first Premier League player to score in four different games against an opponent in a single season since Romelu Lukaku against West Ham in 2014-15.

35' Gakpo ghosted past Akanji and Rodri clumsily brings him down to stop the run. He's only just been booked for doing something similar, a point Liverpool are making to the referee, but there isn't going to be a second yellow here.

Rodri

Yellow Card

33' Rodri has his arms around Jota's middle to pull him back and stop the counter. He can have no complaints with that booking.

31' It's more brilliant work from Mahrez, who gets away from Konate in the box with some lovely footwork. He goes down under pressure from Van Dijk and City are asking for a penalty, but the flag was already up against the Algerian.

29' Liverpool are looking for a way to quickly restore their lead, but City aren't giving them any space at the moment. The hosts are quick to close down the ball and win back possession.

J. Grealish

Assist

27' None of the Liverpool players tracked Grealish's run down the left, which gave him chance to spot Alvarez's run and put it on a plate for him.

J. Álvarez

Goal

27' ALVAREZ EQUALISES! And that has been coming from City! De Bruyne stretches to get it through to Mahrez down the right, and City quickly work it out to Grealish in space on the opposite flank. He fizzes his low cross into the middle with his first touch and Alvarez is there to tap it past Alisson into the net. 1-1!

26' BLOCK! De Bruyne's corner is cleared and when Dias tries to keep it alive, he heads it straight to Elliott. He plays it into Salah first time, with the Egyptian surging from inside his own half to the edge of the box. Grealish tracks him back and deflects his cross into Ederson's gloves.

24' GOOD SAVE! It's a lovely throughball from Elliott into the box, and Salah lets it run for Gakpo, holding off Ake in the process. Ederson rushes out to smother it before the forward can get there, but he was offside anyway.

22' GREAT CHANCE! Liverpool can't clear their lines properly, and this time, it's squared into Mahrez on the edge of the box. It bounces in front of him and he puts his laces through it, but it's always rising and it sails just over the bar.

21' CHANCE! De Bruyne does well to keep the ball in play and pokes a cross back into the middle. Gundogan can't connect with it properly and it's too far behind Alvarez for him to make anything off it.

Mohamed Salah

Yellow Card

19' Salah beats Ake to the long ball and then holds off the defender, thinking he would win a throw-in. When it doesn't go his way, he kicks the ball away in frustration and is booked for dissent.

Diogo Jota

Assist

17' It was clever play from Jota, who quickly realised he couldn't go it alone, but touched it into an area Akanji couldn't reach before blocking him from getting back to it.

Mohamed Salah

Goal

17' SALAH SCORES! It's lifted over the top by Alexander-Arnold for Jota, and he drives into the box, but with Akanji tight to him, he can't get a shot away. He holds it up brilliantly though, blocking off Akanji, so Salah can have a free run onto it and rifle it past Ederson into the far top corner. 1-0 Liverpool!

16' It's a bit frantic in midfield, with neither side able to keep hold of it until Fabinho sends it long to Gakpo. He helps it out to Salah on the right, who checks back inside, but his curled cross is blocked by Dias.

15' CLOSE! As Henderson clears the ball, he just steps on De Bruyne's foot and gives away a free-kick just outside the D. The Belgian leaves it for Mahrez, who whips his shot around the wall towards the far top corner, but it flies just wide.

13' City have lost just one of their last 13 Premier League home games against Liverpool (W7 D5), going down 4-1 in November 2015 under Manuel Pellegrini.

11' CHANCE! City are upping the pressure here and Mahrez has space down the right. He cushions it into Rodri's path and he takes on a shot from the edge of the box, but it's straight at the keeper.

10' Rodri can't control Grealish's pull back, but Gundogan is behind him to spread it back out to De Bruyne. He clips it to Alvarez at the far post, and on the stretch, he pokes it back towards goal, but Alisson collects again.

8' Grealish goes down under a challenge from Fabinho again, but there didn't look to be much contact in that one. The Brazilian is pleading his innocence, but he's now on a final warning. The resulting free-kick comes to nothing.

6' Grealish cuts inside from the left, only to be tripped by Fabinho. De Bruyne's free-kick is taken short, and City work it from left to right before Alvarez clips in a cross, but it's a comfortable catch for Alisson.

4' Liverpool break quickly on the counter, and Gakpo spreads it out to Robertson on the left. He plays a dangerous cross into the six-yard box, but none of his team-mates can get on the end of it.

2' During a City throw-in, Gundogan goes to ground holding his face. Fabinho tried to nudge him away and the hosts are looking for a free-kick that isn't given.

1' De Bruyne gets the game underway for City!

The teams are out on the pitch now, with kick-off just moments away!

Liverpool have failed to score in seven different Premier League games this season, with six of these coming away from home. They last failed to score in more different matches on the road in 2011-12 (eight). In all competitions, the Reds could lose three consecutive games without finding the back of the net for the first time since October 2009.

Jurgen Klopp makes just two changes from their defeat to Madrid last time out. Elliott and Henderson both come into the midfield, meaning Gakpo is back to playing through the middle. Nunez is fit enough for the bench, with Milner dropping out too. Tsimikas is also available despite picking up a rib injury playing for Greece.

Pep Guardiola makes six changes to the side that brushed aside Burnley in the FA Cup quarter-final before the break, and the big news is there's no Erling Haaland as he hasn't recovered from a groin injury. Ederson is back in goal, with Akanji, Ake, Stones, Gundogan and Grealish all coming in. Ortega, Walker, Laporte and Lewis start on the bench, while Phil Foden is unavailable after having appendix surgery.

LIVERPOOL SUBS: Kostas Tsimikas, James Milner, Joel Matip, Darwin Nunez, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Roberto Firmino, Joe Gomez, Caoimhin Kelleher, Arthur.

LIVERPOOL STARTING XI (4-3-3): Alisson; Trent Alexander-Arnold, Ibrahima Konate, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson; Harvey Elliott, Fabinho, Jordan Henderson; Mohamed Salah, Cody Gakpo, Diogo Jota.

MANCHESTER CITY SUBS: Rico Lewis, Stefan Ortega, Maximo Perrone, Aymeric Laporte, Kalvin Phillips, Bernardo Silva, Cole Palmer, Sergio Gomez, Kyle Walker.

MANCHESTER CITY STARTING XI (4-2-3-1): Ederson; John Stones, Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias, Nathan Ake; Rodrigo, Ilkay Gundogan; Riyad Mahrez, Kevin De Bruyne, Jack Grealish; Julian Alvarez.

It's been three weeks since either side played in the Premier League, as last season's top two get ready for the final leg of the campaign. City are currently eight points behind league leaders Arsenal and have the opportunity to close that to five before the Gunners kick-off against Leeds United. The hosts are on a 10-match unbeaten run in all competitions (W8 D2), winning their last six on the bounce, scoring 23 goals and conceding just one in the process. Liverpool are aiming for the top four, and are seven points behind Tottenham coming into this weekend. They looked to have turned a corner with a five-game unbeaten run in the league, but have since lost 1-0 to both Bournemouth and Real Madrid in all competitions.

Hello and welcome to live coverage of the Premier League meeting between Manchester City and Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium!

Manchester City v Liverpool Live Commentary, 01/04/2023

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