Q&AView from Man City: 'These teams have spoiled us - and this could be another classic'

Ahead of the clash at Anfield, sports journalist and City fan Dom Farrell provided us with the comprehensive match preview from the visitors’ perspective…

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What have you made of City’s start to the season?

It’s hard not to be very impressed, really. To an extent, down the final stretch last season, it felt like both City and Liverpool were running on fumes a little bit. There were elements in some of the earlier games this term - the draws at Newcastle and Aston Villa and going 2-0 down at home to Crystal Palace - that suggested some of that was lingering. But Erling Haaland has obviously been a bit of a game-changer, not only in terms of an absurd amount of goals but in the feel of everything. It’s hard to put your finger on exactly why, but the noise in the ground is different when he scores, there’s like a giddy, visceral excitement.

Also, the likes of Kevin De Bruyne, Phil Foden and latterly Jack Grealish - who all had to do their bit selflessly as false nines last season - seem liberated by the big man being there and look like they’re having the time of their lives on the pitch. A couple of defensive injuries aside, preparations for this game probably couldn’t have gone much better before City had to play an hour at Copenhagen in midweek with 10 men.

There were quite significant changes in the summer with Haaland arriving and mainstays like Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko leaving. Have those changes caused City’s style to evolve? If so, how?

I think they have and that’s mainly down to Haaland’s arrival. There were understandable fears that losing both Jesus and Sterling would leave City short of attackers able to get in behind teams. That might still catch up with them later on in the season - for all the depth of quality, it’s not the biggest squad in terms of numbers and they’re probably one or two light. But part of what Jesus and Sterling did was occupy defenders to create a bit of space for the creators behind them and Haaland does that with the added bonus that opponents often seem absolutely terrified of him.

It has made City a bit more direct and that was an issue at the start of the season, with players seeming to look for Haaland too early and rushing attacks. That felt weird after two seasons of very, very patient football. But the Manchester derby, where Haaland also came deeper to link play more effectively than he has done, saw them strike a nice balance.

Sergio Gomez, as an attacking midfielder by trade who is learning to be a left-back, is a weirdly specific replacement for Zinchenko. He’s quality on the ball but, as his red card in Denmark showed, very much a work in progress defensively.

Haaland aside, who have been City’s other standout performers this season?

If Haaland was being anything like normal, he wouldn’t even be City’s best signing from Borussia Dortmund. Manuel Akanji arrived on deadline day at a snip for £15 million and has been a bit of a revelation. Assured on the ball, positionally aware and with the pace to be very comfortable in a high line, he ticks a lot of boxes for a Guardiola defender. With Ruben Dias not quite at his best level yet, Aymeric Laporte just coming back from knee surgery and John Stones suffering his latest hamstring strain, Akanji really has been a vital addition. Nathan Ake partnered him in the Manchester derby and was quietly excellent, as he has been whenever called upon at centre-back or left-back since the beginning of 2022.

Ake’s presence as a left-footed central defender has allowed Joao Cancelo to really play with the shackles off. He’s a sensational creator from full-back who has some question marks over him defensively, but those questions aren’t really being asked too frequently at the moment and he’s a huge attacking asset. He scored, assisted and was involved in another of the goals in the 4-0 win over Southampton last weekend.

Liverpool and City have already met once this season in the Community Shield – do you think that game will have any bearing on Guardiola’s approach at Anfield this weekend?

That seems a long time ago, doesn’t it? I don’t expect it to have too much bearing, no. City only playing two pre-season games in the United States before that - one of which in Green Bay against Bayern Munich was interrupted by a massive electrical storm - left them pretty undercooked and Liverpool were deserved winners. Jürgen Klopp’s recent switch to a 4-2-4 shape has probably figured more prominently in Guardiola’s thoughts. Klopp used that in the 1-1 draw at Etihad Stadium during the lockdown season and it caused a fair few problems.

How do you expect Guardiola to approach the game tactically and selection-wise?

It’s an absolute mug’s game to try to second-guess Guardiola before these sort of games but I think the recent form of both teams will have a bearing. Last season, first by selecting a front three with a huge emphasis on hogging possession at Anfield and then with a hard-running, high-pressing attacking line at the Etihad, it felt like Guardiola’s tactics were informed by trying to find the best way to upset a formidable Liverpool side. Both approaches worked to a large extent but still didn’t yield wins.

This time around, it feels more likely that City will approach things as they have in recent weeks and challenge Liverpool to find a solution. Playing a Southampton side who always try to press high under Ralph Hasenhuttl probably wasn’t bad preparation last weekend and having enough bodies and poise to get through the Liverpool press always feels key in these games.

Kyle Walker tucked into midfield earlier in the season and that didn’t really work. With him injured and Akanji expected to deputise at right-back, it probably means a back three in possession and Bernardo Silva coming deep alongside Rodri to give the defence an extra passing option in the build-up. As usual in these matches, how effectively City can play through Liverpool will have a massive influence on the outcome.

The rivalry between the sides has been incredible for a few years now. Is a meeting with Liverpool, and particularly a trip to Anfield, still seen as the acid test for City and Guardiola?

Yes, absolutely. Guardiola said last weekend he still considers Liverpool to be the biggest test in English football and why wouldn’t he? The experience of the past five seasons will far outweigh an October league table in his mind. City won at Anfield for the first time in 18 years in 2021, but they’d really like to do it with a crowd there. They’ve come close, with Riyad Mahrez almost clearing the Anfield Road End with his penalty four years ago. Last season, they produced a complete first-half performance but failed to score. It remains an itch to scratch.

Both league games finished 2-2 last season and were unbelievable spectacles. Are you expecting something similar this time around?

Why not? Much will be made of Liverpool’s form but these two sets of players know each other inside out. That allows them to generally go hell for leather at each other and there’s a school of thought that this game might be just the thing to get Klopp’s men back to their old selves. Both league games last season were absolutely spectacular, then there was City’s 2-1 win in January 2019 and Liverpool’s 4-3 win at Anfield a year before that. Stick any of those games near the top of a list of the best Premier League games of all time and you’ll have no complaints from me. We’ve really been spoiled by these teams over recent seasons, albeit at the expense of our collective blood pressure.

Who do you see as the biggest threat in Liverpool’s team?

Look at some of the things Mohamed Salah has done in this fixture. He’s a rare talent in world football and will always be a huge threat. If Salah has a quiet game then your chances of getting anything against Liverpool have improved tenfold. Roberto Firmino has looked in good touch lately and his goal against Arsenal last weekend was lovely. They’re both old timers in this rivalry now but that means they know what it’s all about.

Their old mate Sadio Mane is a huge miss, though. He had a ridiculous record against City, scoring four across the three games last season alone. An absolutely wonderful footballer. Things haven’t gone completely to plan for Darwin Nunez so far, but the frankly unfair comparisons between him and Haaland probably mean the big Uruguayan is nailed on to score on Sunday.

Finally, what’s your score prediction?

Liverpool 2-4 City. It would have felt very bold to predict a win on the red side of Merseyside in any of the most recent fixtures and I expect Liverpool to be bang up for this, but it could be a bit like the 2019-20 game at Anfield with the roles reversed. City were a bit off it going into that game and any slips were brutally punished by a Liverpool team on top form. All it takes in this game is a slight drop in level and the opponent will run in a few goals - the first half of last season’s FA Cup semi-final is another good example of that. And then there’s the Haaland factor. He’ll be champing at the bit after his poor Community Shield outing and it feels a bit mad to bet against him at the moment.