Doku Inspires as Manchester City Cruise Past 10-Man Liverpool at Anfield

Manchester City delivered the loudest statement of the Premier League season so far on Sunday, dismantling 10-man Liverpool 3-0 at Anfield in a victory that underlined both their on-pitch ruthlessness and the strange, suspended reality hanging over the club off it.

The league leaders arrived on Merseyside for their first match since being found guilty of breaching the Premier League's financial regulations, greeted by a wall of noise and jeers at every touch from a vociferous home crowd. For an hour, Liverpool matched them blow for blow. Then Ryan Gravenberch's harsh 62nd-minute dismissal cracked the game open, and City responded the way champions do: three goals in 16 devastating minutes from Erling Haaland, Jérémy Doku and Rayan Cherki to make it six wins from six under new manager Enzo Maresca.

A tense first hour at Anfield

Liverpool began the brighter of the two sides, pressing with real intensity in the opening exchanges as injury-hit Andoni Iraola's men looked to protect their unbeaten start. The visitors, though, went closest to a first-half opener when Antoine Semenyo's drilled cross skimmed dangerously through the six-yard box with nobody able to apply the finish. Gianluigi Donnarumma was forced into action early in the second half, denying Lewis Koumas and Gravenberch in a frantic spell that saw Liverpool register three shots in the space of a minute, before Alexis Mac Allister curled an effort wide of the far post.

Haaland then spurned a glorious chance when put through by Semenyo, firing straight at the goalkeeper when the stadium held its breath. The backdrop to all of it was extraordinary: City were playing their first fixture since an independent panel found them guilty of the majority of the 115 charges of financial misconduct brought by the Premier League in February 2023. The club have appealed the verdict and maintain their innocence, but every City touch on Sunday was jeered by a hostile Anfield crowd revelling in the champions' off-field discomfort.

The red card that changed everything

The match turned on a single decision in the 62nd minute. Maresca had introduced Doku just six minutes earlier to inject pace into a cagey contest, and the Belgian winger immediately began tormenting the Liverpool defence. When Gravenberch, already booked, brought down the advancing Doku, referee Chris Kavanagh produced a second yellow card that Liverpool's players furiously protested and their supporters will debate for weeks. It was widely described as a harsh booking, but the decision stood, and Liverpool were down to ten men.

Virgil van Dijk was candid afterwards about the impact of the dismissal, saying the red card obviously changed a big part of the game. Iraola, tasting defeat for the first time as Liverpool manager, insisted his side had performed well until the sending-off and had been good value for the goalless scoreline. Liverpool had lost their first game of the season, and with nine points from six games, the gap to the leaders was beginning to look ominous.

Sixteen minutes of devastation

City did not look back. Within three minutes of the red card, Haaland slammed in a first-time finish after Doku's driven effort cannoned off Mac Allister and diverted into his path, leaving Alisson with no chance. Three minutes later came the moment of the match: a long ball switched out wide to Doku on the left flank, the winger driving forward before slowing, bursting inside onto his right foot and curling a sublime finish into the far corner. It was a strike worthy of deciding any fixture, let alone one of this magnitude.

Cherki added further gloss in the 78th minute, slotting home to complete a sensational team move that involved 41 passes — the longest sequence resulting in a Premier League goal since Phil Foden scored against Nottingham Forest in September 2023 following a 46-pass build-up. The Frenchman's finish, after a chop that left Jeremie Frimpong on the floor, was the exclamation point on a performance that had turned from tense chess match into exhibition football. Remarkably, Doku finished the match with more touches in the opposition penalty area, more successful dribbles and more chances created than any other City player, despite playing only 34 minutes.

A statement win in a season in limbo

And yet there was something surreal about the celebrations at full time. This was a statement victory in the purest footballing sense — a 3-0 win at Anfield against the previous season's great rivals, delivered with swagger — but it arrived with the club's entire season hanging in a strange kind of limbo. The guilty verdict, the appeal, and the unresolved question of what sanctions might ultimately follow mean every result is now viewed through two lenses: what it means for the title race, and what it might mean if the season is later rewritten by lawyers.

Maresca, in his first season at the helm, struck the right note afterwards, challenging his players to learn to deal with the noise and insisting the only thing the squad could control was what happened on the pitch. On this evidence, they are controlling it magnificently. City's players and staff celebrated wildly at the final whistle, a release of weeks of tension, and it is impossible to argue with the football: six wins from six, 18 points, top of the table, and a squad that looks deeper and more dangerous with every passing week.

What it means for the title race

For Liverpool, the inquest will focus on fine margins. Missing several key players through injury, they had competed admirably for an hour and might easily have taken the lead before the dismissal. But title races are decided by such moments, and City's ruthlessness in exploiting them is precisely what separates champions from contenders. Liverpool sit on nine points after six games, already facing an uphill battle in Iraola's first campaign.

For City, the questions will continue off the pitch for months to come. But one thing cannot be questioned, as the performance at Anfield proved beyond doubt: on the pitch, Manchester City remain the team to beat. If the season ultimately proceeds to its natural conclusion, the rest of the league has been put on notice — catching this side will take something extraordinary.