Liverpool vs. Man City Player Ratings: Premier League’s Villains Embrace Their Role

Manchester City ran amok after Ryan Gravenberch was shown a second yellow card on the hour of Sunday’s eagerly anticipated Premier League clash at Anfield, with superb goals from Erling Haaland, Jérémy Doku and Rayan Cherki seeing the visitors home.

The Cityzens were, of course, in action for the first time since an independent comission ruled that the club were guilty on almost all counts of serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial regulations.

A hostile, bitter Anfield thus met the defiant visitors, who were aiming to respond to Arsenal’s come-from-behind victory against Leeds United. And while many will question the significance of these points in the long run, there’s no denying that City’s response was emphatic.

It was control versus chaos, and Maresca’s facilitation of the former won out on Merseyside. Liverpool were bright enough but hindered by key absences, particularly in attack. They offered plenty of bark but little bite, and City made them pay after Gravenberch’s dismissal.

The Reds collapsed, in truth, but City’s goals were of the highest quality. Within six minutes of Gravenberch solemnly strolling down the tunnel, strikes from Haaland and Doku handed Maresca’s side a 2–0 lead. Cherki’s goal 13 minutes later was typical of the Frenchman, and wrapped up the perfect day out for the almost-universally resented Cityzens.

One Thing We Can’t Ignore

This was the fixture the soccer world had waited ever so patiently for since Manchester City’s guilty verdict came to light two weeks ago. A trip to Anfield just had to be on the horizon, didn’t it?

The extent of City’s financial doping has brought the sport, particularly the Premier League, into disrepute, with its consequences catastrophically far-reaching. Liverpool have every right to feel most aggrieved, given that the number of duels lost to Pep Guardiola’s Cityzens during Jürgen Klopp’s reign.

And this was the first meeting between the two clubs without either of the aforementioned managers in over a decade. In truth, the on-field action almost felt secondary. Much of the intrigue surrounding the pre-match histrionics and Anfield’s reaction to the great injustice.

Evasive action was taken by the visitors, who took an unfamiliar route to the ground and were keen to offer their show of defiance. Supporters ’Poznan-d’ in the face of “You’ll Never Walk Alone,” booed the Premier League anthem and waved inflatable bananas in homage to bleaker times in a pre-Premier League world. They’re victims in all this, too; but on Merseyside, they sided with those boasting the “irrefutable evidence” that’s yet to come to light.

And ultimately, Enzo Maresca’s side would prove that, despite the animosity, they remain an excellent soccer team. Fans will relish the short-term glee, but the majority will wonder what this all means

Liverpool Player Ratings vs. Man City (4-2-3-1)

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: Alisson—4.9: There wasn’t all that much Liverpool’s goalkeeper could’ve done here. He was beaten by some outrageous quality from the away side.

RB: Ronald Araújo—6.5: Antoine Semenyo certainly felt he had the beating of the Barcelona loanee, who is proving a surprisingly valuable asset in the final third.

CB: Jérémy Jacquet—5.9: There were some masterful defensive sequences from the Frenchman, but City did have plenty of joy exploiting the channel Jacquet was supposed to be manning.

CB: Virgil van Dijk—5,8: Van Dijk was forced into a rather unfamiliar role due to City’s midfield overload. The Dutchman sought to quell this threat by stepping out of Liverpool’s defense and playing a key role in Iraola’s heavy man-to-man approach.

LB: Milos Kerkez—6.1: Ignored as an attacking outlet, and struggles to fill you with any confidence defensively.

CM: Ryan Gravenberch—6.5: This was Gravenberch of 2024–25... right up until he received a second yellow card just after the hour mark.

CM: Alexis Mac Allister—6.5: An up-and-down afternoon for Mac Allister, who scrapped around for the opening hour but struggled to offer any security thereafter.

RW: Víctor Muñoz—6.7: A real livewire who the Anfield faithful have quickly taken to. Nico O’Reilly had his work cut out all afternoon.

AM: Florian Wirtz—6.5: While there was plenty of focus elsewhere at Anfield, it was impossible to ignore Wirtz’s pretty dire display. Liverpool’s attacks so often broke down when the ball found the feet of the German, who even struggled from dead-ball situations.

LW: Bradley Barcola—7.2: A big disappointment, especially given some of the positions he found himself in. Barcola didn’t play with any assertion.

ST: Lewis Koumas—5.9: Work rate couldn’t be faulted, but it was always going to be a big ask for the young Welshman to lead Liverpool’s attack on such an occasion.

SUB: Trey Nyoni (68’ for Wirtz)—6.1: Was unable to steady the ship after entering proceedings.

SUB: Rio Ngumoha (75’ for Koumas)—6.0: We didn’t see much of the youngster at all.

SUB: Jeremie Frimpong (75’ for Araújo)—5.8: Cherki made a fool out of him just before firing past Alisson.

SUB: Joe Gomez (75’ for Araújo)—N/A

SUB: Federico Chiesa (75’ for Araújo)—N/A

Subs not used: Giorgi Mamardashvili (GK), Wataru Endo, Kostas Tsimikas, James McConnell.

Man City Player Ratings vs. Liverpool (4-2-3-1)

*Ratings provided by FotMob*

GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma—8.5: The Italian parried a few from distance and didn’t always look the most convincing when claiming the high ball. Relatively untested, though.

RB: Matheus Nunes—7.4: The converted midfielder has become ever so comfortable in City’s defense. He dealt with Barcola without issue.

CB: Marc Guéhi—7.5: Guéhi’s composure occasionally got him into trouble up against the relentless Koumas. Barely noticeable after the hosts went down to 10, with City asserting full control.

CB: Rúben Dias—7.2: Led the on-field defiance, helping City weather the storm.

LB: Nico O’Reilly—6.8: O’Reilly had trouble with Muñoz all afternoon, with the Spaniard also tracking his forward forays rather well, too. The Englishman was just starting to threaten in attack before he was taken off after Haaland’s goal.

CM: Elliot Anderson—8.5: It’s becoming clear why Man City paid as much as they did to bring Anderson in this summer. The all-action midfielder was dominant in the middle of the park, contributing across the board.

CM: Enzo Fernández—7.1: Felt like the perfect man for this occasion, given his pantomime villain nature.

RW: Iliman Ndiaye—6.4: Ndiaye probably left the pitch rather frustrated with his day’s work.

AM: Rayan Cherki—8.6: Cherki sprinkled the odd dose of magic in a first half that struggled to ignite despite the febrile atmosphere. An utterly genius finish for City’s third.

LW: Antoine Semenyo—7.1: The Ghanaian had more joy when he stationed out on the right, often making the right decision in the final third.

ST: Erling Haaland—7.7: After missing a one-on-one that he so rarely spurns, Haaland opened the scoring with an emphatic finish almost immediately after Liverpool were reduced to 10.

SUB: Jérémy Doku (66’ for Ndiaye)—8.0: A difference-maker off the bench. He takes City to another level when he’s on song.

SUB: Joško Gvardiol (66’ for O’Reilly)—7.1: His clever flick teed up Cherki’s goal, pleasing FPL owners devastated by his benching.

SUB: Ayoubb Bouaddi (80’ for Fernández)—6.4: Booked, and air-mailed a shot into the stands.

SUB: Allan (80’ for Haaland)—6.0: Little to note during his cameo.

Subs not used: Gerónimo Rulli (GK), Abdukodir Khusanov, Rico Lewis, Mateo Kovačić, Vitor Reis.

What the Ratings Tell Us

• Ryan Gravenberch saw red just after the hour mark, yet his performance was deserving of acclaim. He’s been one of Iraola’s fall guys at the start of his reign, having starred during Liverpool’s title triumph two seasons ago. This was Gravenberch of that vintage, with the tone set within a couple of minutes when he delightfully rolled Enzo Fernández to break the game open. Such trademark sequences littered the midfielder’s showing, and although he’ll now be forced to sit out of next week’s trip to Brentford, Gravenberch offered great encouragement.
• Jérémy Doku‘s campaign has so far been hindered by injury, but the Belgian reminded everyone off the bench that he ranks among the world‘s most destructive wide players. While the contest tilted drastically after Gravenberch’s second yellow card, Doku’s introduction was also instrumental in City eventually coasting.
• Elliot Anderson cost plenty, but boy, can the Englishman play, or what? This is no direct Rodri replacement; Anderson is his own man.

The Numbers That Explain City’s Ruthless Victory

• The two teams struggled to create anything of substance in the first half, combining for just 0.47 xG and zero big chances.
• There were 18 fouls in the first half at Anfield—the most in the first half of a Premier League game at this ground since Liverpool vs. Arsenal in November 2021 (also 18).
• City only ended the match with an xG of 1.30, highlighting the quality of the finishes that sank the hosts.