CITY PLAYED INTO OUR HANDS – KOP STAR OX
MANCHESTER CITY’S UNBEATEN RECORD GOES IN A SEVEN-GOAL ANFIELD THRILLER
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain felt Manchester City’s tactics played into Liverpool’s hands as the Reds handed Pep Guardiola’s side their first Premier League loss of the season with a thrilling 4-3 win at Anfield.
Oxlade-Chamberlain set the hosts on their way early on yesterday, with Leroy Sane equalising before the break.
A blistering start to the second half saw Liverpool roar into a 4-1 lead thanks to goals from Roberto Firmino, Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah, but City threatened an unlikely comeback thanks to late efforts from Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan.
“We know they like to play out from the back and they are really good at it, but at the same time we thrive when teams try and do that, it can play into our hands,” OxladeChamberlain said.
“Second half, when we went on a bit of a rampage for five or 10 minutes that showed.”
The loss was runaway leaders City’s first in 23 league games this term.
“It’s a nice statement to make,”saidOxlade-Chamberlain. “They’ve been brilliant all year. We knew we had what it took if we were 100 per cent at the races to get three points today.”
Mane admitted the nerves were jangling at the end, though, as City fought back to within one goal.
“It was not easy for us – 4-1, 4-2, 4-3, you are a bit scared, but we worked as a team and I think we deserved to win today,” he said.
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp was full of praise for his side’s display, claiming they made City look “insecure”.
“That is how football can look if two teams combine quality, skills with attitude,” he said.
“We deserved the three points, but they deserved that it was not as clear as it was five minutes before the end. I never thought the result would be 4-1, even when we were 4-1 up.
“I’m really proud of my boys that we could perform like we performed tonight.”
Klopp insisted he “was not worried” about City’s fightback, as his focus was on the positives in his own side’s display. “I’m really interested in the performance and we showed a few signs tonight, very important signs,” he said.
“Not only second half, but especially second half, we played pressing from another planet.