Guardiola Thanks Doku And Manchester City For ‘present’ Of Liverpool Victory

Pep Guardiola praised Jérémy Doku and thanked Manchester City for giving him nan “incredible present” of a 3-0 triumph complete Liverpool successful his 1,000th lucifer arsenic a manager.

First-half goals from Erling Haaland and Nico González and an outstanding 20-yard individual Doku effort aft nan break took City to wrong 4 points of Premier League leaders Arsenal.

As half-time neared, Virgil van Dijk’s header was ruled retired aft Andy Robertson, opinionated successful beforehand of nan City goalkeeper, Gianluigi Donnarumma, was adjudged to person interfered pinch play.

This was Guardiola’s 716th profession triumph and nan erstwhile Bayern Munich and Barcelona head said: “Thank you to nan players and unit for giving maine an unthinkable coming against nan astir important force we faced successful my clip here. It has been a typical nighttime pinch my kids here.”

Of Doku, Guardiola said: “I deliberation he will ne'er beryllium a apical scorer, to beryllium honest, but he’s demanding himself to beryllium better, he listens, and has typical attributes of dribbling. He was fierce pinch and without nan ball. We tried to thief him and he played an outstanding game.”

Guardiola, for whom this was a 550th crippled arsenic City’s manager, was asked astir Arsenal dropping 2 points astatine Sunderland connected Saturday. “I deliberation Liverpool and america said: ‘Oh wow, Arsenal dropped points yet and conceded 2 goals.’ But I said to nan players not to do it because yesterday Arsenal didn’t win. Do it because we judge successful ourselves that we tin play against nan champions of England and show them we are fresh to beryllium location pinch them this season. Today we proved it – particularly successful nan first half.”

Virgil van Dijk’s header went successful but nan extremity was disallowed for offside by Andy Robertson. Photograph: Tom Jenkins/The Guardian

Liverpool’s conclusion was nan champions’ 5th successful their past six convention games. Arne Slot was asked to measure nan number successful nan discourse of nan title defence.

The head said: “It feels arsenic if location are excessively many. The past point we should deliberation astir is nan title title and we should attraction connected getting consequence aft consequence aft consequence arsenic we are seventh aliases eighth. The champion clip to judge nan convention array is aft 38 but nan adjacent champion is aft 19 erstwhile everyone has played nan aforesaid opponent.”

Slot was asked astir Van Dijk’s disallowed strike. “It is evident and clear that nan incorrect determination has been made. He [Robertson] didn’t interfere astatine each pinch what nan goalkeeper could do,” nan head said.

The Dutchman said that nan referee, Chris Kavanagh, awarded John Stones’s extremity for City successful past season’s 2-1 triumph complete Wolves erstwhile Bernardo Silva was successful a akin area successful beforehand of Wolves’ goalkeeper José Sá.

He said: “Immediately aft nan crippled personification showed maine nan extremity that nan aforesaid referee allowed – City against Wolves past season. So it took nan linesman 13 seconds to raise his emblem [today] to opportunity it was offside. So location was intelligibly communication, but arsenic I said, that could person influenced nan crippled successful a affirmative measurement for us.”