Daniel Taylor's match report
Full-time: Liverpool 3-0 City
The tie’s not over - you don’t need to tell that to Liverpool, of all clubs - but Jürgen Klopp’s team have enjoyed a wonderful first leg. They were marvellous in the first half during which they established a lead that City will have to excel to erase. They scored three fine goals thanks to Salah, Oxlade-Chamberlain and Mane and some of their slightly less vaunted players were outstanding: Robertson, Oxlade-Chamerblain, Alexander-Arnold, Milner and, yes, Dejan Lovren. The loss of Salah to a groin injury of unknown gravity is a concern for the second leg, as is the enduring class of City’s players: but Liverpool blew Guardiola’s men away today and will be confident of scoring at least once in Manchester. Guardiola needs to get his thinking cap on.
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90+2 min: Sterling chops down Wijnaldum on half-way and gets a booking - and a hearty cheer from his ex-admirers.
90+2 min: City again look to Sane to create a breakthrough. He makes a piercing run in-field and goes for a return pass from Silva ... but it’s overhit and Karius runs out to claim.
90 min: There will be at least three more minutes for Liverpool to endure ...
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89 min: Everyone bar Ederson is in Liverpool’s third of the pitch. But still City can’t force a clear opening. Liverpool have defended superbly so far.
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88 min: Alexander-Arnold, who coped very well with an in-form Sane today, heads a long diagonal ball away from the winger.
85 min: Henderson booked for tripping Sterling near half-way. That Liverpool’s captain out of the second leg.
Liverpool substitution: Moreno on, Oxlade-Chamberlain off.
83 min: The remaining minutes of this leg are going to be huge for this tie. If Liverpool can survive without an away goal, they’ll be ecstatic.
82 min: City are probing anew, circling Liverpool’s box like a basketball team. De Bruyne nearly squeezes a pass through to Silva but a ricochet takes it into the hands of Karius!
80 min: De Bruyne booked for a late tackle on Mane - nothing vicious, he was just beaten for pace. That was moments after Robertson curtailed a city attack with a good sliding challenge on Sterling.
79 min: City sloppily give up possession in the centre circle and suddenly Solanke is running forward with the ball at his feet and a team-mate to either side, with only three City defenders in front of them! But Solanke mislays his attempted pass.
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77 min: Walker misplaces a pass ... and the crowd goes wild! Moments later Jesus gets a freekick given against him for a shunt on Milner near half-way: the youngster turns around and waves an angry hand at the ref, who responds with a hand containing a yellow card.
74 min: Sterling swaps passes with De Bruyne and then speeds down the right and fires over a cross. But it’s just behind Jesus, who tries to improvise but fails to turn his volley anywhere close to the target.
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72 min: Excellent headed clearance by Lovren at the near post. He dived in front of Silva and copped a boot in the head, earning a freekick.
71 min: Solanke shows what he was put on for: he dashes into the right-hand channel to receive a lofted pass from midfield. And then he delivers a useful cross Otamendi prevents Mane from getting a clean touch to it.
Liverpool substitution: Solanke on, Firmino off.
69 min: Otamendi gets on the end of another Silva corner but again can’t keep his header down.
68 min: Sane swings over another cross from the left. Van Dijk heads it away. Mane gathers and sets off on a scamper forward. But he doesn’t even make it out of his own half before City win it back and resume their own attacking.
65 min: As Liverpool try to relieve the pressure with a rare counter-attack, they lose possession and are nearly caught out on a counter-counter. but Alexander-Arnold remained alert and beat Sane to the through-ball.
63 min: Lovren makes a crucial interception in the box as Sane again tried to tee up de Bruyne. The hosts are living on a razor’s edge now and, without Salah, are short of an outlet.
62 min: Sterlings first involvement is to dart into the Liverpool area and receive a pass from Fernandinho - but he’s incorrectly pulled back for offside, to the audible glee of Liverpool fans.
60 min: Sane is City’s main source of danger. He glides down the left wing again and then turns in-field and tees up De Bruyne. The Belgian decides against shooting from 20 yards and tries to creep a little closer. But Liverpool foil that plan.
58 min: sane tries to wriggle his way past four opponents in the box and very nearly succeeds. Eventually strength of numbers prevails and the German loses the run of the ball, allowing his compatriot in the Liverpool goal to rush out and scoop it up.
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57 min: Liverpool are starting to sink a little deeper, pushed backwards by City. Nerves are jangling at Anfield ...
City substitution: Sterling on, Gundogan off.
55 min: Smart defending by Alexander-Arnold to intercept a cross by Silva at the expense of a corner. De Bruyne’s delivery triggers mayhem in the Liverpool area. Gundogan tries a snapshot from 16 yards but it’s deflected wide for another corner. The pressure from City is building ....
53 min: Another flowing move by City - they’re starting to hit a groove. Sane gets in behind Alexander-Arnold but crosses wide at the near post.
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Liverpool substitution: Salah off, seemingly with groin bother, Wijnaldum on.
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52 min: The ball bounces to Fernandinho about 10 yards outside the Liverpool box. He plays a beautiful disguised pass to Sane at the left-hand side of the area. The winger cracks a shot across goal and wide.
51 min: Here’s a concern for Liverpool: Salah has hobbled over to the bench and asked for attention. The fact he didn’t gesture to be substituted suggests it might not be serious but he’s not a player that Klopp is likely to take a risks with.
50 min: Silva drifts over another out-winging corner. This time it sails beyonds van Dijk. Otamedi meets it near the penalty spot but Firmino is pressurising him and he can’t direct his header on target.
48 min: it’s scrappy so far. City are trying to get into a passing rhtymn but Liverpool keep getting a foot in.
46 min: City make a bright start to the second half and win an early corner. But Silva’s delivery, like so many others so far today, founders on Van Dijk.
46 min: The teams are back out and neither manager has changed personnel.
Gareth Southgate is at Anfield today. And several hundred emails in my inbox suggest he should be considering starting an all-Liverpool midfield at the World Cup, with Henderson, Milner and Oxlade-Chamberlain.
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@Paul_Doyle Brilliant first half esp from Robertson who is actually the buy of the season, not Salah. Now can Liverpool sit out the second 45 and win a tidy 3-0? NO!
— Harry Palmer (@Harry_Palmer1) April 4, 2018
“I am certain Pool fans are still quite nervous at this scoreline. Bearing in mind that the last time they ran 3-0 up against this side, the game finished 4-3 and was *inches* from being 4-4. Any City fan would take that scoreline back to the Etihad.” - Matt Richman
“From a huge Red fan a 5-0 score would be comfortable. This game is a marker to the other European teams to take notice! Zero away goals conceded is the primary mission now.@ - Brandon Dwonch.
Early on in this match, a chant went up from the away fans: “Living in the past, living in the past, just like United you’re living in the past.” But the noise around Anfield since then suggests the locals are very much loving the now.
If you think what you need after that half is more info about the pre-match bus bottling, then here you go.
Half-time: Liverpool 3-0 City
What a rollicking half that was from Liverpool! They pressed and discombobulated City in midfield and swarmed all over their defence and took three chances while threatening to score even more. City have looked tactically unbalanced but, more pertinently, physically overwhelmed. James Milner has been a tiger in midfield, Firmino has been terrific and Oxlade-Chamberlain is doing an uncanny impression of Steven Gerrard. Guardiola’s side, meanwhile, did not manage a shot on target in the whole half and the Catalan needs a rethink at half-time. Sterling to be the rescue? Or will Liverpool wrap up this tie today? Liverpool fans, what score would make you feel safe for the second leg? Or are you just worrying about making to the end of this game with your lead intact?
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After Otamendi is booked, Salah curls a freekick in from the left wing. Van Dijk soars and heads ... just wide from 12 yards!
45 min: Freekick to City about 30 yards out. De Bruyne clips it into the penalty area ... but it drops beyond everyone and rolls out for a goal kick.
43 min: Firmino creates space for a shot from 25 yards. He lets fly ... but it off-target.
42 min: Mane jinks past Otamendi on the right-hand side of the City box - poor Otamendi will be dizzy at half-time, he’s been turned inside and out in the last half hour or so. But this time he gets away with it because Mane’s cross yields nothing.
40 min: Prolonged boos indicate a period of possession for City - but mostly in harmless places. Eventually they delvier a cross from the right but Van Dijk gobbles it up.
38 min: Robertson, with a little shimmy and then a burst of pace, storms past Jesus, who’s so exasperated that he just boots him to the ground. That’s a freekick to Liverpool and a perfect summary of how things have gone so far in this game: City are being blown away and at risk of degenerating into a rabble. Pep’s got to get his thinking cap on!
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35 min: Robertson intercepts a pass ion his own half and then charges 50 yards forward and into the City box. He marauds past Otamendi as if the defender isn’t there. Only Fernandinho is able to keep pace with him and he blocks Roberton’s shot at the end of an exhilarating break by the Scot.
33 min: De Bruyne tries to pick out Sane from deep. Van Dijk heads it behind for a corner. Sane swings it over but Van Dijk clears again.
GOAL! Liverpool 3-0 City (Mane 31)
My oh my! Again the attack started with a tackle, Firmino winning the ball brilliantly in midfield. Salah had one attempt at a cross from the right blocked but then hung a second one up to the back post, where three Liverpool players confronted just two from City. Mane rose highest and headed in from close range! City are reeling, Liverpool are on a roll and Anfield is rocking!
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27 min: After prolonged high-tempo probing by Liverpool, Oxlade-Chamberlain flips the ball out wide to Alexander-Arnold, who spanks in a vicious low cross. Walker makes a meal of coping with it but ultimately manages to whack it away before Mane can exploit his jitters. Liverpool are trying to put this tie out of reach in the first leg! OK, I’ll steady on, I’ve no idea how many goals they’d have to score for this to be out of reach.
25 min: Robertson storms down the left wing and pings in a decent ross. Ederson dives to punch it away at the near post. It’s not a very convincing punch but City eventually scramble it away. But they’re jittery back there and no mistake.
24 min: De Bruyne scoops a pass from mid-way inside the opposing half over the Liverpool defence. Jesus, who has been peripheral to proceedings so far, tries to get on the end of it but has no chance ot getting there before Karius.
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23 min: Walker crosses from the right. Alexander-Arnold gets just enough on it at the back post to deviate it away from Sane, who was lurking with intent.
GOAL! Liverpool 2-0 City (Oxlade-Chamberlain 20)
Boom! What a strike from long-range by Oxlade-Chamberlain, smashed from 20 yards with such a force that it was practically past Ederson before the keeper dived! And the chance was set up by a superb tackle by Milner to win the ball back for Liverpool.
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18 min: City are stroking the ball around again, but in inconsequential areas.
16 min: The replay of the goal reveals some pertinent facts: firstly, Salah was fractionally offside, just inside City’s half; and then, Otamendi was rash and walker sluggish as Firmino teed up Salah.
15 min: City threaten to strike back almost instantly. Silva released Sane, who fizzed a low shot from the edge of the area just past the far post.
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13 min: Milner fired a long low pass into the right channel. Salah skinned Laporte to get to it first and feed Firmino, whose shot from 12 yards was blocked. But the Brazilian recycled quickly to Salah, who lashed it into the middle of the goal from 10 yards! Cue bedlam!
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GOAL! Liverpool 1-0 City (Salah 13)
He’s unstoppable!
12 min: Alexander-Arnold clips a ball forward into the right channel. Laporte misjudges it and Oxlade-Chamberlain nudges in front of him and digs out a decent cross. But no one had anticipated that turn of events so there was no Liverpool player on hand to meet it.
9 min: De Bruyne is playing in central midfield, where City effectively have four players to Liverpool’s three: that is helping to give the visitors a degree of control. They’ve had most of the possession so far, forcing Liverpool to scamper after them with gusto, which Liverpool are well able to do, so far.
7 min: Laporte, with a slight head start, wins a race against Salah to prevent Liverpool from launching a counter-attack. Then City go forward and Sane skips into the Liverpool box and lets fly with a low cross/shot. It’s defelcted into the sidenetting. And the corner is cleared.
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5 min: City are trying to establish control. They’re knocking the ball about crisply in Liverpool’s half.
3 min: Fernandinho nicks the ball off Firmino in midfield - after Firmino did the same thing to him moments previously. The Brazilian then tries to thread a pass through to Jesus, but Van Dijk read his intentions and got to the ball first.
2 min: We’re off to a predictably frantic start - a bit too frantic for Walker, who got caught by Mane dawdling on the ball in the right-back slot. But Liverpool’s cross came to nought.
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1 min: They’re off ... and it’s on!
Yellow card pointer: For Liverpool, Henderson and Moreno are a booking away from missing their next European match. Danilo, Gundogan and Fernandinho are walking that same line for City.
Out stride the teams to a tremendous din. Liverpool are all in red, City all in sky blue (except for white shorts), the officials are all in black and the fans’ chants are drowning out the Champions League anthem. Everything is as it should be.
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You’ll Never Walk Alone is ringing out around Anfield. You know how it goes on nights like this. The players will enter the theatre anon ...
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Klopp & Guardiola discuss the football
Klopp: “When you have the ball you need to be cool and smart and use the space. City have changed their formation a little bit. That shows they want to do something here, and that’s what we want too.”
Guardiola: “The intention is to try to defend when they have the ball and attack when we have it and score goals.” When it is put to him that Laporte faces a big test against Salah, he replies: “All the full-backs in the world have a big test against Salah! Laporte is left-footed and will try to deal with him and also counter-attack.”
Klopp & Guardiola discuss the bus bottling
Klopp: “I really don’t understand that. We tried everything to avoid a situation like that. When we came through it was very positive and we didn’t know what had happened before - City went ahead of us. For Liverpool I have to say sorry.”
Guardiola: “I want to say thank you to Jürgen for his words. We did not expect this [attack] after what happened last year at Dortmund. Fortunately no one’s health has been hurt. I know that is not Liverpool: I know the history of the club is much bigger than these four, five or ten guys.”
“As a Chelsea fan I have to agree with Noel Brown [see 19.14],” says Brendan Large. “I’s great being out of this competition because now it possible to enjoy some bloody good football! Instead of worrying about it.” Fandom perverts the spectacle. And so does betting, kids!
“Kudos to the photographer for capturing the moment before the hurled can of Tin exploded on the windscreen of the City bus,” yelps Peter Oh. Personally I find that sort of behaviour deplorable, not to mention a needless waste of beer. How about something less violent but still meaningful? Like, for example, a whopee cushion on Sterling’s seat on the bench?” You’re making some rash assumptions there, Peter. Do we know it was a beer bottle? And if it was, do we know that the beer had not been drunk and replaced by a less wholesome liquid? Haven’t you ever been to a rock concert? Not that this is to be taken lightly: throwing bottles at people or vehicles is just not on. It would be interesting to see what effect it would have if City fans decided to greet Liverpool’s bus with an outpouring of love and happiness: instead of jeers, hymns; instead of bottles, flower petals; instead of flares, incense. That’d throw em.
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“It’s great being a neutral with this one. As a Mancunian red, COME ON! errrrrrrm. #maythebesteamwin” Noel Brown there, making the best of it. That’s the spirit.
Anyone else disappointed that Sterling is not starting today? The tactical reasons are understandable - ie the need to introduce more mobility and muscle to central midfield - but Sterling will know that others may suspect that Guardiola fears he will shrink on his return to Anfield, where he has yet to perform well since departing under a cloud towards the end of the Rodgers era. it’ll be fascinating to see how he does if he comes on: he’s been brilliant for most of this season and thriving at Anfield would be another touchstone by which to measure his enormous progress.
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City’s bus has arrived and intrepid journalist Des Kelly has been to have a look at it: it seems that, in addition to paper cups, the chucked missiles included bottles and other objects propelled with sufficient force to shatter a window or two.
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Atmosphere update
City’s bus had to navigate its way through dense red smoke and a rowdy throng to reach Anfield. A few ne’er-do-wells chucked stuff at the windows, including paper cups.
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TEAMS
With Joel Matip, Joe Gomez and Ragnar Klavan all injured, Liverpool’s bench includes Conor Masterson, a 19-year-old Irish centreback who has yet to make an appearance for the first team. City, meanwhile, seem set to deploy Aymeric Laporte at left-back and beef up central midfield by starting with Gundogan and Fernandinho while Sterling begins on the bench. That may mean that De Bruyne will operate from the right.
Liverpool: Karius; Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk, Lovren, Robertson; Milner, Henderson, Oxlade-Chamberlain; Mané, Firmino, Salah
Subs: Mignolet, Clyne, Masterson, Wijnaldum, Moreno, Ings, Solanke
Man City: Ederson; Walker, Otamendi, Kompany, Laporte; Gundogan, Fernandinho, D Silva; De Bruyne, Jesus, Sané
Subs: Bravo, Danilo, Delph, Stones, Sterling, Zinchenko, B Silva
Referee: F Brych (Germany)
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Preamble
Hello and welcome. That hors d’oeuvre that Cristiano Ronaldo served up last night can only have whetted the appetites of any Liverpool and Man City players who were watching - and now it’s time for Mohamed Salah, Kevin De Bruyne, Sadio Mané, Raheem Sterling & Friends to show what they can do. What a feast we may be about to tuck into! A patch of north-west England is home to two of the most entertaining teams in Europe, each brimming with players devoted to attacking with skill and gusto under managers whose instinct is to chuck caution to the whirlwind. Go on, try to guess exactly how this one’s going to play out! The suspicion is there’ll be goals galore but there’s really no telling who’ll hit most.
OK, City have probably got to be favourites. They’re 18 points ahead of Liverpool in the Premier League, after all, and at times this season have looked untouchable. When they’re in the groove Pep Guardiola’s men use the ball like both a toy and an instrument of torture. But that’s not how things went down when they last visited Anfield, at least not for most of a match in which City were caught up in a storm of Liverpool’s creation before fighting back and losing by the odd goal in seven. The closing minutes of that game were nerve-wracking for the Anfield faithful but how the locals would welcome a repeat of the first 70 minutes or so, when Liverpool tore into their visitors and left them in a spin the like of which Pep Guardiola’s team have not endured anywhere else this season. Can Jürgen Klopp’s men do it again? Or has Guardiola rigged up an even bigger flame-thrower to fight the home side’s fire, even without the injured Sergio Aguero?
As one Manchester-based manager recently pointed out, football heritage is important. This is only City’s second appearance in the quarter-finals of Europe’s to competition. Liverpool have already been here 13 times, winning nine of those previous ties, starting back in 1965 when they held their nerve through a home and away leg against FC Cologne, and then a clash on neutral ground before ultimately prevailing on a coin-toss. Liverpool and the European Cup has pretty much been high drama sine then, especially at Anfield. Mind you, many of those memories are growing dimmer: Liverpool’s last quarter-final was nine years ago – and that ended in a defeat to English opponents (Chelsea). Whereas City knocked out PSG at this stage just two years ago. City are intent on becoming the club of this era and it just might be that no one can stop them. Other than Wigan, obviously.
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