Premier League: 5 things learnt as Manchester City maul Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool 5-0

Manchester: In an expected goal scoring fest between Liverpool and Manchester City, Pep Guardiola’s side shockingly annihilated the Reds with a scoreline of 5-0.

The visitors sternly tested the three at the back system used by Pep during the first half, but the game turned on its head after Sadio Mane was given his marching orders from referee Jon Moss for a high boot to Ederson.

Sergio Aguero opened the account for the Sky Blues, while braces from Gabriel Jesus and substitute Leroy Sane ensured Jurgen Klopp suffered his second joint highest defeat in his managerial career.

Here are 5 things we learned -

1) Should Sadio Mane have seen a red?

(Photo: AP)

While Mane’s red card sparked debate widely over social media, it all boils down to the referee’s decision in the end.

Yes, his intent was not malicious going for a 50/50 challenge with his eyes on the ball, but a boot to the face could ruin anybody’s career.

Times have changed over the years, unlike before where a high boot kick would be considered acceptable (Hello, Nigel de Jong) but in heated moments like these, even latest decision review facilities such as Video Assistant Referee cannot help much.

As Thierry Henry pointed after the match, the condition Ederson was in, had an influence on referee’s Jon Moss decision. Moss eventually reaches for his right pocket (where the yellow cards are placed) but with Otamendi signalling a boot to the face and other players calling for the medical attention, the referee changes his decision in a split of a second and reaches out for a red card from his left pocket.

Controversial, but worthy of a send off.   

2) Clean sheet for Manchester City, but defence still an issue for both teams

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Liverpool and Manchester City are renowned for their attacking firepower, but the match exposed a shoddy defence of both the teams.

Nicolas Otamendi was taken back to school by Mohamed Salah on a couple of occasions during the first half, with John Stones and right-back Danilo looking unassured in defence.

Sadio Mane and Wijnaldum are seen asking for the ball in the middle on noticing the space exposed by the Man City defenders.

 The absence of Vincent Kompany highlighted how Manchester City get panicky without a determined leader at the back.

On the other hand, Klopp’s move to play Ragnar Klavan ahead of Dejan Lovren and Alberto Moreno for Andy Robertson backfired.

Leroy Sane is unmarked in the middle before the 5th goal, while Kyle Walker is left free by Alberto Moreno on the right.

The Reds had an unbeaten run against the top six sides last season, but shambolic displays in defence caused them the Premier League title. And now having missed on Virgil Van Dijk after the transfer window, the decision will only continue to haunt Jurgen Klopp until he pursues a new world-class central defender.

3) Aguero and Jesus upfront – The best of both worlds for City

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Manchester City did not enjoy much success in a 3-5-2 formation at the start of their campaign, given Pep Guardiola’s attempt to squeeze Gabriel Jesus and Sergio Aguero upfront.

City did not look so smooth and lively going forward, that even disrupted the free flowing passing they're renowned for. Guardiola has one of the world’s best in Sergio Aguero, but the Argentine is more lethal given his attacking responsibility is burdened by a support striker (evident with Diego Forlan at Atletico Madrid and Lionel Messi for Argentina).

Below is an example of how Aguero benefits with Gabriel Jesus. Klavan has his eye on Aguero ahead of him, but Jesus cunnigly shifts into empty space before Alberto Moreno realises it's too late.

2nd goal - Aguero is well marked by Klavan, but 3 City players are left unmarked by the opposition

If the South American flavour continues to bloom this way, there’s no reason why the two don’t deserve to play together.

4) Kevin de Bruyne is City’s creative outlet, and where is Liverpool’s?

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Kevin de Bruyne fell out of favour with many Fantasy football managers, failing to register a goal or an assist in his first three outings. However, contributions never really justify his significance to the team.

Playing a much deeper role allows David Silva the license to roam as a free no.10, helping the Spaniard thread passes to the strikers.

During the first half, de Bruyne split a killer pass to Aguero for the opening goal and emerged as the creative fulcrum of the team, stretching opposition defenders out of position and also assisting with crosses.

Klavan is seen marking Gabriel Jesus on his left, while Aguero spots acres of space to make a run behind Matip.

While the Belgian dazzled, it also served as a reminder to Jurgen Klopp of how badly he needed Philippe Coutinho. With Sadio Mane’s departure, the team ran out of ideas and from thereon, it was one-way traffic for the Citizens.   

5) Competition for places – a major headache for Guardiola

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Pep Guardiola went trophyless for the first time during his managerial career, with an FA Cup semi final being the closest he came to. However, after a major revamp with hassle-free spending, his boys now look hungrier than ever.

A bench comprising of the likes of Illkay Gundogan, Leroy Sane, Raheem Sterling, Bernardo Silva, Yaya Toure presents the Citizens with the strongest squad depth in the league.

But with each of them impressing whenever given opportunities, the system conundrum will only grow in the long term.

Stay too defensive with 5 defenders or sacrifice a midfielder, forward? Players are always going to challenge themselves for places, but in tense matches, the Catalan boss needs to identify players he can mould in his system to bring out the best in them, for the betterment of the team.