Man City vs Liverpool: 5 Talking Points

Man City and Liverpool served up a sumptuous game yesterday. It was a tight match and though the result probably wasn’t to either team’s liking, it was a fair reflection of how things unfolded. Here are the five talking points of the match:

Thrilling Game

The game was an absolute thriller. Liverpool was on top for more periods of the game than City but both sides went for it as a win was what they wanted. Quality players were on display and they showed their class. All four goals had elements of tenacity, grit and sheer class about them. Once it became 2-2, both teams went for the jugular and the end-to-end stuff was simply riveting! Were it not for a brilliant save by Joe Hart, Liverpool might have done what only Man United have managed to do: Beat City at the Etihad!

Kudos to Liverpool

I thought the away team was absolutely fantastic yesterday. They really didn’t look like a team which is 7th in the table and 9 points off 4th spot. Their body language oozed determination and a will to get three points from this match. They were in control for long periods and though lack of focus and shoddy decision making let them down, their goals were amazing. Gerrard and Sturridge were the stand out performers but guys like Henderson, Johnson also deserves mention for the shift they put in. Building on this performance is what Liverpool has to do.

The Controversy

It wasn’t a controversy to be honest, though the City fans and their manager would have you believe differently. Agger DID foul Dzeko but the referee waved play on. Liverpool had absolutely no obligation to just let go of meaningful possession which led to Sturridge firing brilliantly past his international colleague Hart. The goal’s class kind of got overshadowed by the ringing boos around the ground. City’s players ought to have been more focused. Had they closed Sturridge down, there would’ve been no goal. They must learn from this. Credit to Liverpool for making their possession count.

City’s Malaise

Man City just don`t look the side they were last year. Their star players looked off colour and the absence of Yaya Toure and Kompany, mainly as leaders, was keenly felt. A few players like Milner and Zabaleta played to their potential but the others just didn’t step up when most needed. To add to that, Mancini brought on Maicon for Silva when City had just gone down to a typical Gerrard strike in the 74th minute. Tevez had been warming up a while back and to see a wing back instead of a striker was simply baffling. Tevez’s energy in the last 15′ would have done a lot more for the home team than Maicon managed to do. With 13 games to go, City is 9 points behind league toppers Manchester United. Overhauling that will take some effort!

Top drawer goals

3 of the 4 goals were moments of individual brilliance. The 1st goal of the game saw the Liverpool defence simply switch off to allow Milner to steal in and drill a cross which Dzeko had to just divert into the goal. Simplest of finishes, but it was Milner whose driving run saw him past two defenders and allowed him to pick Dzeko out. The second goal of the game saw Sturridge announce himself to his ex-home crowd. His fast, low shot was too much for Hart to handle and it gave Liverpool the equalizer six minutes after they’d gone behind. Great finish from a player who is looking like he is enjoying his time at Liverpool, and being the main man is a role he is born to perform. The third goal of the match was a typical Gerrard 30 yarder. One could tell as soon as the ball stood up to be hit that Hart would have no chance of saving it and it turned out that way. It was a goal Liverpool deserved and at that moment, it looked as if they would get a big confidence boosting win. Sadly for them, Pepe Reina‘s howler put paid to that hope. He needlessly charged out to Aguero who, it must be said, finished absolutely superbly from a very tight angle. He underlined his importance to the side with that goal. It was a goal he deserved to get and it gave City a lot of hope going into the final 12 minutes.

This match was an absolute cracker. However, though the result was a fair one, it didn`t do much good for either side. Both have lots to do if they are to meet their objective of winning the league and achieving 4th spot respectively.