1) After the typically grandiose buildup, the slightly too mellow, manufactured competitive advantage based more on mutual respect and healthy competition than one would want, and the convenient post-international break after a huge Saturday lunchtime clash between first and second place in the Premier League, it was fitting to see Pep Guardiola and Jürgen Klopp win again after a 100-minute fight The. Both can claim to be one of the best teams the sport has ever seen, but Lightning McQueen remains the clear goat after a 1-1 draw between two of the best teams in the country over the last few years.
2) It was a strange game, perhaps best summed up by the fact that shortly before Gary Neville named Trent Alexander-Arnold, the Man of the Match was declared Jeremy Docku on the Etihad Stadium's Skyrocket - not enough time to get into the "opposite number ' debate - as his choice.
Both are fair choices. Doku was a constant threat in this game, creating more chances down the left than anyone else, making more dribbles (11) than the other 26 players combined (10), and shoveling the ball more than any player except Bernardo Silva; Alexander-Arnold scored a superb equalizer, led the match in interceptions, and held his own in one-on-one play after some shaky early moments later to maintain his form.
This contrast between opinions lends itself to a contest where opinion is king when scrutinizing results. Both Manchester City and Liverpool have reasons to see this through, whether it's scoring a point or dropping two, depending on their chosen agendas.
Trent Alexander-Arnold celebrates Liverpool's goal against Manchester City.
3) However, multiple libraries. Honestly. He's such an efficient footballer that it's easy to forget that he so seamlessly replaced veteran Riyad Mahrez, who played for five seasons. Manchester City and Pep Guardiola, who recently went crazy with the idea that it would be foolish to let Cole Palmer go, would do well to watch Doku play again, as the Chelsea striker will have limited game time against the Belgian this season and there's no reason why that can be denied. Change this.
In the opening stages of the game, we sat in front of the great Docku tree and watched as he picked up the ball on the left, slipped it past one (usually two) defenders and sent in a low cross that Liverpool barely managed to repel.
As the game progressed, one of his rare traits became more prevalent: he almost never lost the ball. For someone who clearly relies on dribbling, skill and speed, Doku turned and broke the ball up a surprising number of times when the situation called for it. Instead of trying to force the issue, he recognized a locked door and went through the restart rather than charging straight in.
Around the hour mark, he was the furthest away City striker when a Liverpool corner countered. Alexander-Arnold recovered well enough for his teammates to come back in support, but Doku rounded a couple of them and then simply passed the ball away while others wasted chances by rushing into no-man's land with their heads down. The vast majority of his passes were backwards, but he was undoubtedly the most dangerous player on the pitch.
4) Another narrative threat to the game is goalie assignments.
For ten minutes Liverpool passed the ball from the back with ease under City's high pressure, choosing the right options and executing them confidently. Then Alisson not only chose the wrong pass, but made a poor one too, passing the ball to Phil Foden on the edge of the box.
The ensuing save was simple, but it set up Brazil
The Man of the Match set the tone for the rest of the game. He was nearly caught in his own box by Erlin Harland - no credit to Curtis Jones - and the first goal came when he slipped while trying to free Mo Salah with a rattlesnake.
Things didn't improve - and it wasn't exactly as if City forced the issue. In the 78th minute, Alisson kicked the ball out for a goal kick under no pressure after Alexis Mac Allister broke up an attack and counter-attacked. Injury time then saw two more agonizing kicks in quick succession, followed by an apparent hamstring strain, which the home side could not punish with a dramatic back corner.
. For once, not only was he their worst player, but they managed to return the favor and bail him out.
5) Ederson's composure at the other end did little to help in terms of comparison. The City goalkeeper's foot control was second to none and created the opportunity for Foden to break Liverpool's front two defenses with a brilliant low cross on the stroke of half-time.
Ederson also ruled his area when he got an easy corner, an unpredictable chink in Allison's armor.
6) Which brings us to the sadly important goal that was denied. Liverpool's momentum had largely disappeared when Ruben Dias slotted into an empty net in the 67th minute and City's lead appeared to be doubled.
The home side struggled to dominate at that stage, but they didn't have to look safe enough.
So when Julian Alvarez took a corner and Alisson headed the ball away after an aerial challenge with Manuel Akanji, the result seemed certain. However Chris Kavanagh spotted an infringement, which replays confirmed, but the referee made no obvious or apparent error. As they both jumped, Akanji put a fuzzy arm on Alisson's arm, which was enough to rule it out.
In isolation, it may have been a fair enough decision. But to paraphrase the distant chorus of millions of Arsenal fans: Jolington, two hands, Gabriel's back. Did the slight contact on Akanji's arm cause Alisson to end up on the ground covering his toes?
7) Akanji positively tucked Alisson into his own goal in the 86th minute, removing any doubt that it was fair for him to do so. That one was a bit more obvious.
Akanji played a hybrid defensive role against a team that excels at quick transitions, committing two fouls in the entire game, and both of them were against the opposing goalie. He was great, it was textbook.
8) Better than that Julian Alvarez held off Salah in the first half to stop Liverpool's counter-attack, while Darwin Nunez and Diogo Jota arrived on the other side to provide support and received no yellow cards. Guardiola found another pure disciple there.
9) Two of the best moments for the offense in the first half came from the defense. Joel Matip, tired of getting the ball to him and then passing it straight back from where it came, decided to stroll through City's attack and midfield and at one point reached the edge of their box. Ederson made a fine save when Salah's ensuing cross found the head of Nunez.
City took the lead ten minutes later when a miss from Alisson fell to Nathan Ake. He slipped past Dominic Sobosley, cut inside Alexander-Arnold and then slotted Harland through for a brilliant finish. The marauding center back's run was a joy to watch.
10) Harland's two touches before the shot were only better than the third, touching the ball on the side foot and over Alisson. Controls with his right foot, moves the ball off his foot with his left and scores with his left. Hovered between Matip and Van Dyke, brutal, economical and efficient.
The other gap in this game was between the Norwegian and Nunez, who had no shortage of effort but couldn't find an edge. A great Liverpool move kept him out thanks to Jones and Soboslai, but Nunez touched the ball about four times in the box but still couldn't get it out from under his feet and the attack ultimately failed.
There's obviously no great shame in not being able to go toe-to-toe with Harland at center. It will come for Nunez. These fixtures have highlighted his current flaws even more. Trying to distract people by taking Guardiola out after the fact is a great job, though. That's elite level awareness.
11) There's no point in saying how clever Silva is; he'll never be for sale. But on the edge of our box, he epitomized his unique excellence when he intercepted Jones' pass and immediately eluded Salah with a spinning toe before poking the ball past Mike Allister to launch a brilliant counter-attack.
12) Liverpool's equalizer really came out of nothing. The compounding parts of the offense were innocent: a misplaced pass from Luis Diaz and a five-yarder from Salah. But Alexander-Arnold's set-piece was perfect, and for a player with his striking ability, the move turned into a goal-scoring opportunity.
Cody Gakpo deserves credit for being the MVP of the move, Diaz had intended to pass the ball to the Dutchman and after Salah picked the ball back up, Gakpo sprinted into the box and created enough space and time for Alexander-Arnold to control the shot.
13) Thankfully, the lack of a winner made any result bias meaningless, but Guardiola made no substitutions while Klopp went all out with all five of his men in a clever display of difference in approach. Liverpool's bench, however, was stronger in terms of attacking options. That's not to say City will end up chasing too many games, but whenever they do, Oscar Bobb has a lot of eggs in his basket.
14) Liverpool could have been two goals down less than half a minute before Alexander-Arnold scored. Doku beats Matip out wide and crosses the ball into the box again, Harland flicks it in at the near post but Alisson parries it away. Even though Brazil
Man is Liverpool's problem and he is part of the solution.
15) It always feels weird to pat a professional footballer on the head because he's at least competent, but equally, it's weird to see supporters panic due to a replacement having to start a real game without them soiling themselves as a result.
Kostas Tsimikas is great. It's almost as if the three years he spent at Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp weren't entirely by accident, and that he'd be a perfect replacement for Andy Robertson and challenge him. Foden and Alvarez were pretty quiet on that side of the pitch, which is probably no coincidence when the volume on the Doku is turned up to 11.
16) Pep Guardiola was "very happy" with his team, while Klopp praised his players' "mentality" after a poor first half, and at least both coaches are at the top of their game, even if their teams are not.
Both sides recognized that the game could have been won if both sides had played better. Jurgen Klopp has defused a row between Guardiola and Nunez because he "loves" them both. Guardiola said he "didn't see" the disallowed goal. As a reminder, the two teams are said to be engaged in a "fierce" rivalry this week. Instead, the post-match magnanimity was refreshing.
