Liverpool vs Man City player ratings: Florian Wirtz struggles in tough outing for the Reds

Manchester City extended their perfect start to the season with a 3-0 win at Anfield, inflicting a first defeat for Liverpool under Andoni Iraola. Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Rayan Cherki scored, and Liverpool had been reduced to 10 men by then after Ryan Gravenberch was sent off for a second yellow card.

Goals and turning points

Haaland gave City the lead after missing a huge chance early in the second half, finishing emphatically past Alisson. Doku then added a second with a strike the source described as an absolute belter, and he had come on at 56 minutes for Iliman Ndiaye. Elliot Anderson provided the assist. Cherki capped the win with a lovely goal of his own.

Liverpool had their moments before the red card. Gravenberch, who came in for the injured Dominik Szoboszlai, was the home side’s best player until his dismissal. Afterwards, City’s attack was simply too good for Liverpool once they had the extra man.

Liverpool player ratings

• Alisson (5): Could do nothing to keep out Haaland’s strike, then was beaten by Doku’s finish and Cherki’s footwork.
• Ronald Araujo (5): Picked up an early yellow card and will be annoyed that the first two City goals came from his side.
• Virgil van Dijk (6): Often pushed out of position to help Liverpool deal with being outnumbered in midfield.
• Jeremy Jacquet (6): Not a bad display from a young talent, though this was a real eye-opener against a quality City attack.
• Milos Kerkez (5): Battled well with Ndiaye and pushed up regularly but lacked quality in the final third.
• Alexis Mac Allister (5): Grew into the game but struggled once Liverpool went down to 10 men.
• Ryan Gravenberch (6): Liverpool’s best player until he was sent off for a second yellow card, which was naive on his part.
• Victor Munoz (7): Played with real fearlessness and was an absolute nuisance for City, causing Nico O’Reilly all sorts of problems.
• Florian Wirtz (4): Largely ineffective and made some poor decisions in a game of this magnitude.
• Bradley Barcola (5): Sharp on the ball and did his defensive duties, but like Wirtz, must do more in the final third.
• Lewis Koumas (7): Making his first Premier League start, the 21-year-old got stuck in from the outset in an energetic display loved by the Anfield crowd.

Manchester City player ratings

• Gianluigi Donnarumma (7): Had a shaky start but made a string of good saves early in the second half to deny Koumas and Gravenberch.
• Matheus Nunes (7): An impressive display, including a great tackle in the box to deny Barcola in the first half.
• Ruben Dias (7): Did well to weather the early storm and keep Liverpool out.
• Marc Guehi (7): A strong performance at centre-half, especially when Liverpool attacked the Kop end.
• Nico O’Reilly (6): Solid going forward but had his work cut out against Munoz and was booked for a second-half foul on the Spaniard.
• Elliot Anderson (7): Always showed for the ball and was constantly involved, and got the assist for Doku.
• Enzo Fernandez (6): Forced Alisson into a good stop in the first half but did not really grow into the game until Gravenberch was sent off.
• Iliman Ndiaye (6): Dangerous on the ball and had a few threatening moments before being replaced by Doku.
• Rayan Cherki (8): Capped a day to remember for City with a lovely goal.
• Antoine Semenyo (7): Threatening all afternoon and part of an attack that overwhelmed Liverpool.
• Erling Haaland (8): Quiet in the first half, but finished emphatically to give City the lead after missing a big chance.
• Jeremy Doku (8): Came on and scored an absolute belter.