MANCHESTER – Pep Guardiola’s 1,000th match as a top-flight coach ended in perfect style as Manchester City beat Premier League champions Liverpool 3-0 to move within four points of leaders Arsenal. Victory was City’s first over Liverpool in five successive league matches.

Erling Haaland put City in charge with his 28th goal for club and country this season and 99th Premier League strike in the 29th minute after earlier seeing a penalty saved by Giorgi Mamardashvili after the goalkeeper had been penalised for tripping man of the match Jeremy Doku.

The Norway centre-forward quickly made amends with a fine header to a Matheus Nunes cross. This was Haaland’s first goal against Liverpool in a match in which Virgil van Dijk has started.

Liverpool thought they had equalised before half-time when captain Van Dijk rose to head home Mohamed Salah’s corner but their celebrations were curtailed as the goal was ruled out for offside, Andy Robertson ducking in front of City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to allow the ball to go in.

City capitalised in first-half stoppage time when Nico Gonzalez’s 20-yard shot deflected in off Van Dijk, with Mamardashvili wrong-footed.

Doku crowned his performance with a superb solo goal just after the hour. The goal sealed liverpool’s first league defeat by three goals or more since they went down 7-2 at Aston Villa on October 4, 2020.

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