Pep Guardiola and Arne Slot agreed that Jeremy Doku was "outstanding" in Manchester City’s victory over Liverpool, with the Belgian winger starring in a 3-0 win for the Blues. Reds boss Slot saw his side suffer another demoralising defeat at the Etihad Stadium, but he has played down any suggestion that the reigning Premier League champions are in crisis.
Seven defeats in 10: City inflict more misery on Liverpool
Liverpool have come unstuck in seven of their last 10 games in all competitions. Having swept to the English top-flight crown in dominant fashion last season, they are now sat eighth in the table – eight points adrift of leaders Arsenal through just 11 fixtures. Questions are being asked of what has gone wrong at Anfield.
Doku helped to generate more of those when running the Reds ragged in Manchester. He caused Liverpool’s defence problems all afternoon, with a player of the match performance being topped off by a stunning long-range goal that was whipped into the back of the net from the edge of the box.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportGuardiola celebrates 1,000 games: Doku stars on landmark occasion
City boss Guardiola was full of praise for his players afterwards, with the Catalan coach enjoying an outing to remember on the occasion of his 1,000th game as a manager. He told : “My players gave me a good present with this performance against the champions. We had to perform good and many good things happened, they all performed to the highest level. Defensively it was really good. We know their threat in behind with Mo [Salah] and the quality of [Dominik] Szoboszlai and [Florian] Wirtz and we have incredible energy with our people.
“Playing at home and winning is good for the international break. Gigi [Donnarumma] made the saves he should. Both the full-backs were outstanding. The midfielders gave us a lot of passes and control. Of course the threat of Jeremy [Doku] was outstanding alongside Erling [Haaland].”
Asked if Doku put in his best display for City, Guardiola added: “One of the best by far, for influence. Their right-back Conor [Bradley] is so quick, I saw his game against Vinicius Junior [vs Real Madrid]. We made a really good game.”
Problems for Slot: Liverpool boss looking for answers
Liverpool boss Slot added on seeing his team picked apart by Doku and Co: “They were better than us. We had a very hard time bringing the ball out from the back and it was difficult to hold on to the ball. We struggled with Doku on the inside and [Nico] O'Reilly wide. Then, of course, a referee decision could have influenced a more positive half-time feeling for us. 2-0 down at half-time makes it very difficult to get a result here.
“Sometimes going in at 1-1 can give you something different in the second half. We solved some issues we were having in the second half. And then an unbelievable goal from Doku put us 3-0 down, but I still saw a team that wanted to get back into it.”
GOALWhy didn't Salah track back? Tactical questions asked of Liverpool
Slot has seen his tactical approach questioned, with Doku being allowed to run riot against Bradley as Egyptian winger Salah refused to track back. Ex-Reds midfielder Danny Murphy told : “Doku was a pleasure to watch, irrespective of who you support and who you wanted to win. You had to admire his skill, pace, strength and bravery – and his goal was just amazing. The way Liverpool were set up, though, actually helped him shine.
“He was electric and the game's star man. This was the best I've seen him play in a City shirt, but Salah not being asked to defend made it so easy for him. It became a really productive area of the pitch for City, and was one of the reasons they won so comfortably in the end.
“Because Salah stayed high up the pitch when O'Reilly was flying forward, it left Bradley isolated, and with a dilemma – did he commit and stick with Doku, or drop off him and pick up O'Reilly charging forward instead? Bradley was caught in between both players a lot because he was unsure what to do, but whatever he did it felt like there was always so much space over there for City to exploit.
“I am not saying Salah should now become a completely different player – you don't want him running back every time you lose the ball, because sometimes you want him ready for the transition where O'Reilly is out of position. Salah almost got in a few times like that on Sunday, because of his pace, but there has to be balance.
“In a game like this one, where you are 20 minutes in and Doku has been running your right-back ragged, then you could drop in for a spell even if you've been told you don't have to. I don't understand why he didn't do it at all.”
Liverpool will return to action after the international break with a home date against Nottingham Forest on November 22, while City will travel to Newcastle on the same day.