Manchester City won 3-0 at Anfield on Sunday, with Erling Haaland, Jérémy Doku and Rayan Cherki scoring in a 13-minute spell after Liverpool’s Ryan Gravenberch was sent off for a second yellow card. It was City’s first match since the commission’s verdict on the club’s financial charges, and the Kop spent most of the afternoon letting them know it.

An hour of nothing, then a red card

For 62 minutes this was a scrappy, short-tempered game. Opta counted 18 fouls in the first half alone, the most in a first half at Anfield in a Premier League game since Liverpool against Arsenal in November 2021. A scuffle between Alexis Mac Allister and Elliot Anderson broke out in the 12th minute, and The Guardian’s David Hytner called it “the definition of handbags”.

Liverpool had the better of the early second half. Lewis Koumas, 21, making his first full league start, forced a save from Gianluigi Donnarumma straight after the restart, and Gravenberch and Mac Allister both had efforts before City stirred. Sky Sports put City’s expected goals at only 0.16 until the red card.

Haaland then blew a clear chance on the hour, steering a shot past the far post after an Antoine Semenyo through ball. Two minutes later the game turned. Gravenberch, already booked early in the second half for a foul on Anderson, challenged Doku, who had been on as a substitute since the 56th minute, and the referee Chris Kavanagh showed him a second yellow. Gary Neville called it “very soft” on Sky commentary. The Guardian described the contact as “not exactly strong” and the challenge as clumsy.

Three goals in 13 minutes

Sky timed Haaland’s opener at two minutes and 36 seconds after the sending off. The Associated Press described the 65th-minute goal as a first-time finish from Doku’s deflected cross, three minutes after the red card.

Erling Haaland gives Manchester City the lead against Liverpool 🎯 pic.twitter.com/cELo5y60Fk

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 11, 2026

Image/video: Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) on X

Doku doubled the lead in the 68th minute, cutting in from the right and curling a shot into the top corner past Alisson. Manchester City’s own match report said he “mirrored the move that led to the opener”.

"It's a GEM" 💎

A beautiful strike from Jérémy Doku to double Man City's lead! pic.twitter.com/lCUFfQmdLC

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 11, 2026

Image/video: Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) on X

The third came in the 78th minute and was the best of the three. Cherki dummied a pass from Anderson, ran onto a back-heel from Josko Gvardiol, who had replaced Nico O’Reilly in the 66th minute, then dragged the ball away from Jeremie Frimpong and finished under Alisson. Al Jazeera’s live blog noted there were 41 passes in the build-up, against a previous best this season of 24 for a move that ended in a goal.

A moment of individual brilliance from Rayan Cherki to put the game beyond all doubt 🤯 pic.twitter.com/wvmTMZcGhW

— Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) October 11, 2026

Image/video: Sky Sports Premier League (@SkySportsPL) on X

Liverpool without their best attackers

Anfield has not often been kind to City. Their own report called it a ground that has “rarely been a happy hunting ground for the Blues” over the years.

Andoni Iraola’s side were missing Dominik Szoboszlai, Cody Gakpo and Alexander Isak, who all picked up injuries during the international break, according to The Guardian, which called them arguably Liverpool’s three best players this season. It showed. Liverpool created chances in the second half but lacked punch, and Donnarumma made a series of saves, including a double stop from Koumas and Gravenberch.

The result was Liverpool’s first defeat under Iraola. Sky Sports said it left them nine points behind City. Iraola gave a fair account of the afternoon: “I think we played two different games today. One game until the red card where the players have been very good and we were the best team, but a goal hasn’t materialized. The second game from there, City were better than us.”

The noise, and Maresca’s answer

City sent their buses around the back of the stadium to avoid the streets, but the welcome inside was loud. The Guardian reported a banner before kick-off with the word “cheats” and a long run of pound signs. The Associated Press heard chants of “cheat, cheat” and “going down”, and said many Liverpool fans had left before the end, with more than ten minutes still to play.

After the final whistle, the AP reported, smiles on the faces of Haaland and Maresca showed the relief as City’s players and staff went to thank the away end, where Haaland’s father Alfie was among the celebrating fans. Maresca summed up what the result meant inside the club: “In this moment all the organization needs this kind of win. It’s good for us as a coaching staff, it’s good for the players, it’s good for the fans, it’s good for the organization.”

City’s travelling fans came with inflatable bananas, and ended the day as the loudest section of the ground. The club maintain their innocence and have appealed. The AP said the panel found City had artificially inflated revenue to help sign big names, and that the accusations covered a nine-year period from 2009 to 2018, when City won three league titles. The AP noted that possible sanctions include a fine, points deductions or even expulsion from the top flight, though none has been decided.

Enzo Maresca spoke about the noise afterwards. “We need to learn how to deal with the noise because it will be with us in all the away games,” he told Sky Sports. “Our noise is to win games like today. At the end of the game, it was just our fans and our noise.”

Haaland spoke in similar terms. “It’s time to stay strong mentally and stick together and do what you can do something about,” he said. “What we can do something about is play good football and fight together.”

What the record says

• City have won all six league games this season and have 18 points. They lead second-placed Arsenal by three.
• It is back-to-back league wins at Anfield for City for the first time since January 1953, after a 2-1 win there in February.
• All three City goals came within 16 minutes of Gravenberch’s red card.

Sky’s Roy Keane said the sending off helped City, but he praised what they did with it: “The three goals were fantastic.” Man City’s report picked Anderson as the best player on the pitch, describing a midfielder who was “alert to every danger” and composed on the ball.

What it does for the title race

City remain the only team with a perfect start to the league season, and they sit three points clear of defending champions Arsenal, who beat Leeds 2-1 on Saturday. Elsewhere in Europe, the weekend was just as busy: Barcelona matched their best La Liga start and Real Madrid won 1-0 but Vinícius was sent off. You can follow all of it in our football section.

Nothing about the verdict has gone away. The appeal is pending, and the sanctions question hangs over every fixture. On the pitch, Anfield’s anger did not unsettle City once they had an extra man.

Next: Paris Saint-Germain at the Etihad

City’s next test comes in midweek. They host Paris Saint-Germain, the reigning European champions, in the Champions League league phase on Wednesday, 14 October, with kick-off at 20:00 UK time, which is 00:30 IST on Thursday. City won 2-0 at FC Porto in last month’s opener. The table now reads City first on 18 points, Arsenal three behind, and Liverpool nine adrift.

Sources: The Guardian, Manchester City, Sky Sports, AP via CBS Sports, Al Jazeera.

Photo: FYI2023 / Wikimedia Commons, CC0. Anfield stadium in May 2024.