Pep Guardiola hailed Liverpool’s counter-attacking threats (Image: talkSPORT)
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has acknowledged that Liverpool’s formidable attacking force outshone his team during their 2-0 defeat at Anfield as he singled out five players for praise.
Reigning champions City suffered another setback, their sixth loss in the past seven encounters with Liverpool, plunging them further away from top spot as the Reds opened an 11-point lead.
Reds manager Arne Slot and his attack-minded squad received praise from Guardiola ahead of City’s next match against Nottingham Forest.
The City coach reflected on the power of Liverpool’s front line, conceding, “I love wingers but I wanted more control because we know, when they lose [the ball], the counter-attack with [Mo] Salah, with [Dominik] Szoboszlai, with [Luis] Diaz, with [Cody] Gakpo and [Darwin] Nunez.
“They are so fast. Stronger, quicker, faster than us in that position.
Arne Slot has enjoyed a fantastic first 20 games at Liverpool, winning 18 (Image: Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
“The first 50, 55 minutes we [struggled], like many other times coming here in our prime. We suffered, they scored the goal, we are 1-0 down. We cannot compete against Liverpool. Not just Liverpool but many other clubs, the transitional teams.”
Meanwhile, Liverpool are positioning itself as the title favourites, now comfortably nine points clear of closest rivals Arsenal and Chelsea, though Slot remains cautious, reminding everyone that titles aren’t secured in December.
“I’ve said many times already that we don’t look at it at this moment like this,” the Dutchman explained. “We know we have a difficult week coming up again.
“We fought [Real] Madrid and City which were very difficult teams to face, but I think it’s even harder to go away to Newcastle. We’re not even halfway through the season yet, but it’s a good position to be in, that’s definitely true.”
Six of the Reds’ next nine fixtures are away from home, starting with Wednesday’s trip to St James’ Park, but Slot isn’t worried.
Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez and Mohamed Salah earned praise from Pep Guardiola (Image: Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)
“The good thing for me is that it’s not only us who played that many games,” he added. “So for example, we face Everton [on Saturday], they’ve had a game during the week as well.
“We know we have a difficult week coming up again. Mostly we face teams that are rested for a week because we play [in the] Champions League and some others don’t. But now many teams have many games because it’s England and we play a lot of games in this period of time.
“I wasn’t aware of the fact that six of the nine were away. But now you tell me, it makes it even more difficult but we’re ready for it.”
Source: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1984272/Pep-Guardiola-five-Liverpool-players-Man-City