MANCHESTER: Manchester City crushed rivals Liverpool 3-0 in a high-stakes Premier League clash on Sunday, with Erling Haaland, Nico Gonzalez and Jeremy Doku scoring to seal a win that could prove pivotal in the title race.
The game was City boss Pep Guardiola’s 1,000th as a manager and his team marked the milestone with a statement victory that saw them climb to second in the table on 22 points after 11 games, four adrift of leaders Arsenal. Holders Liverpool tumbled to eighth on 18 points.
City were sharp from the outset and Haaland rose high over Ibrahima Konate to head home Matheus Nunes’ whipped cross in the 29th minute for his 99th league goal for the club. The goal made amends for the Norwegian missing a penalty early in the game, and Haaland karate-kicked the corner flag in celebration.
Gonzalez doubled their lead seconds before halftime when his strike from distance took a deflection off Virgil van Dijk’s leg to leave goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili wrongfooted. Doku put the game out of reach when he whipped a blistering shot from just outside the box into the far corner in the 63rd minute.