The Liverpool vs Manchester City player ratings were a ton of fun to dish out as the hosts secured a statement win against their long-time rivals at Anfield.
Goals from Cody Gakpo and Mohamed Salah did the damage for Liverpool as Arne Slot’s side won 2-0 with minimal fuss and are now nine points clear atop the Premier League table.
Manchester City were better in the second half but looked well below par as Pep Guardiola’s side are now without a win in their last seven games in all competitions.
Below are the Liverpool vs Manchester City player ratings out of 10, with analysis on each player.
Liverpool player ratings
Caoimhin Kelleher: 7 - Had very little to do before he made a big stop to deny De Bruyne late on after Van Dijk’s mistake. His distribution and handling was solid.
Trent Alexander-Arnold: 7 - Majestic ball over the top to Salah for Liverpool’s opener. Defended Nunes well but struggled a bit against Doku and was subbed off, probably due to tiredness after just returning.
Joe Gomez: 8 - Solid and steady after getting the nod to start at center back. Kept Haaland quiet. Big performance.
Virgil van Dijk: 8 - A real threat at the other end. Hit the post, should have scored another and nodded another over. A ridiculous clearance to stop Haaland with a ball over the top but did make a big mistake late on that De Bruyne couldn’t make the most of it.
Andy Robertson: 7 - Solid and steady as ever and a great ball to Gakpo in the second half to set up a big chance. Lewis and Silva didn’t get a sniff going forward on that side.
Ryan Gravenberch: 7 - Snapped into challenges and won the ball back well on multiple occasions.
Alexis Mac Allister: 7 - Like Gravenberch, worked so hard to win the ball back quickly. Not his best quality, but dug in and did plenty of great defensive work.
Mohamed Salah: 8 - His cross for Gakpo’s goal was worth the admission fee alone. Akanji and Ake doubled up on him but still found space with direct balls on the counter. His usual busy self and slotted home his penalty after missing a big chance on the break in the second half.
Dominik Szoboszlai: 7 - Got on the ball in the right areas and had a few decent efforts on goal.
Cody Gakpo: 8 - Got yet another goal and was dangerous as he kept buzzing inside and outside. Gave Walker an awful time.
Luis Diaz: 7 - Playing up top centrally isn’t his best position but he worked hard and forced mistakes.
Substitutions
Jarell Quansah (on for Alexander-Arnold 73'): 7 - Solid and steady at right back and helped Liverpool regain control.
Darwin Nunez (on for Gakpo 73'): 7 - Worked his socks off up top and made several big challenges to stop City gaining momentum.
Curtis Jones (on for Salah 84'): N/A
Harvey Elliott (on for Diaz 90'): N/A
Manchester City player ratings
Stefan Ortega: 6 - After his surprise inclusion over Ederson he did well. A few sloppy passes and looked a little rusty, but did make a great stop to push Van Dijk’s header onto the post and then to deny Gakpo. Gave away a penalty after being left with a mess to deal with.
Kyle Walker: 5 - Switched off to allow Gakpo to score and involved in the poor decision making which led to Liverpool’s penalty kick. Another bad display defensively. Has regressed massively this season.
Ruben Dias: 6 - City looked much better at the back after they settled down following a ropey first 15 minutes. Dias helped them dig in but he was at fault for the move to give away the penalty kick.
Manuel Akanji: 6.5 - Did well when stepping into midfield to try and solidify things. Did his best to help Ake out with Salah, but caught out on the ball over the top before Gakpo’s goal.
Nathan Ake: 6.5 - Some good defending one-on-one against Salah and held his own.
Rico Lewis: 5 - Lined up on the right of midfield to start and looked totally lost. Gave the ball away and didn’t help Walker out defensively. Lacking in confidence.
Bernardo Silva: 5 - Really poor display as he gave the ball away constantly, which is very unlike him. Much better when allowed to drift further forward but that didn’t happen enough.
Ilkay Gundogan: 5 - Like Silva, looked uncomfortable from the start in a slightly deeper role. They were both better when Akanji slotted in so they could press and play higher up the pitch. Subbed off early in the second half.
Matheus Nunes: 5 - Worked hard on the left but like Lewis he looked lost on the ball. Went on a few one-on-one dribbles against Alexander-Arnold but never looked like beating him.
Phil Foden: 6 - Buzzed around but couldn’t get on the ball and grew increasingly frustrated.
Erling Haaland: 6 - Barely had a kick in the first half as City struggled to connect passes in midfield and attack. Fed off scraps in the second and was totally isolated.
Substitutions
Jeremy Doku (on for Nunes 58'): 8 - Instantly gave City more attacking threat and creativity.
Savinho (on for Gundogan 58'): 7 - Like Doku, he created chances and probed and always looked forward.
Jack Grealish (on for Lewis 79'): 6 - Didn’t get enough time to have an impact but tidy when he did.
Kevin de Bruyne (on for Foden 79'): 6 - Made some clever runs in attack and had City’s best chance but denied by Kelleher.
