Manchester City 0–2 Liverpool: Player Ratings As Liverpool Silence the Defending Champions

SI Soccer

·23 Februari 2025

Manchester City 0–2 Liverpool: Player Ratings As Liverpool Silence the Defending Champions

Liverpool were a class above Manchester City in their comfortable 0–2 victory at the home of the reigning champions.

Both Manchester City and Liverpool came into their Premier League clash looking to get back to winning ways. Pep Guardiola's men crashed out of the Champions League at the hands of Real Madrid while the Reds settled for a 2–2 draw with Aston Villa on Wednesday. A packed Etihad eagerly awaited the headlining fixture of the weekend between the two English giants.

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It was the visitors, though, who struck first in Manchester. None other than Mohamed Salah got Liverpool on the scoresheet in the 14th minute thanks to a hefty deflection from Nathan Aké. The Egyptian superstar has now bagged 25 goals in the Premier League this season.

Arne Slot's men doubled their lead before halftime. Once again, Salah was at the heart of the action as he got on the end of a ball over the top from Trent Alexander-Arnold on the right wing. The 32-year-old then laid it off to Dominik Szoboszlai, who calmly slotted home a left-footed finish.

Just 15 minutes into the second half, Curtis Jones momentarily thought he found a third goal for the Reds, but VAR wiped it away for offside. Liverpool were ultimately content to let City enjoy long spells of possession to close out the game. Without Erling Haaland up top, the hosts struggled to capitalize on their few threatening chances and were held scoreless when the final whistle blew.

The victory extended Liverpool's lead atop the Premier League standings to 11 points. Second-place Arsenal do have a game in hand, but the gap to Slot's team is beginning to look much too large for the Gunners to mount a true title challenge. City, meanwhile, remain in fourth place, trailing Liverpool by a staggering 20 points.