Premier League reaction as 'phenomenal' Man City close gap on leaders Arsenal

Arsenal's challenging set of fixtures

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Arsenal

Arsenal, on the other hand, will return to Premier League action with a north London derby against Tottenham at the Emirates on 23 November.

Three days later, Mikel Arteta's side, who dropped points against Sunderland in a 2-2 draw on Saturday, will host high-flying Bayern Munich in the Champions League before a short trip to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea (30 Nov).

They will then face Brentford (3 Dec), Aston Villa (6 Dec), Wolves (13 Dec), Everton (21 Dec), Brighton (27 Dec) and Villa again (30 Dec) in the Premier League.

They also face Club Brugge (10 Dec) in the Champions League and Crystal Palace (23 Dec) in the League Cup quarter-final.

With a packed schedule across three competitions, how Arteta’s side navigate the coming weeks could go a long way in determining where the Premier League title ends up come the end of the season.

Can Man City close in on Arsenal?

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Manchester City

Can Manchester City pull off a run of results to reduce their deficit to leaders Arsenal over the coming weeks?

It's safe to say City have a favourable set of fixtures to come in the Premier League after the international break, compared to Mikel Arteta's Arsenal, who will have three consecutive London derbies to negotiate on their return.

City will resume their campaign with a testing trip to St James' Park to face Newcastle, who have been in good form at home and almost snatched a point from Arsenal there in September.

They will then face Leeds United (29 Nov), Fulham (2 Dec), Sunderland (6 Dec), Crystal Palace (14 Dec), West Ham (20 Dec) and Nottingham Forest (27 Dec) this year.

Pep Guardiola will also have to juggle with other commitments, with City facing Bayer Leverkusen (25 Nov) and Real Madrid (10 Dec) in the Champions League and Brentford (17 Dec) in the League Cup quarter-final.

Arsenal still firm favourites in title race - Opta Supercomputer

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Premier League

Manchester City might have made a statement of intent in the title race with their 3-0 win against reigning champions Liverpool last night and moved four points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal before the international break.

But they are still some way off from catching the Gunners, according to Opta's Premier League predictions.

The Opta supercomputer's latest prediction has Pep Guardiola's City finishing about seven points behind Arsenal at the end of the season.

Opta still gives Arsenal 63.60% chance of winning the title this season with City only having a 22.94% chance of becoming champions in the latest set of simulations.

Liverpool, meanwhile, have only a 7.01% probability of defending the title while Chelsea have a 2.75% chance.

Predicted points after 38 games:

Arsenal - 80.19

Man City - 73.50

Liverpool - 68.23

Chelsea - 63.34

Aston Villa - 60.76

Crystal Palace - 59.32

Man Utd - 56.37

Bournemouth - 56.31

Brighton - 55.93

Tottenham - 54.97

'I take my hat off to Pep'

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Roy Keane

Former Manchester United midfielder on Sky Sports

The win percentage is absolutely amazing.

I know people have argued over the years that he's always worked with brilliant players, but you still have to manage them, look after their egos, the style of play they've got.

I take my hat off to Pep [Guardiola]. The man is absolutely amazing, and the stats are mind-boggling.

'Haaland is the best striker in the world and it’s not even a debate'

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Meanwhile, just like Jeremy Doku and Nico O'Reilly, Erling Haaland continued to produce the goods in front of goal. Despite having his penalty saved, the Norwegian forward was on the scoresheet, making it 13 goals this season in the Premier League.

One Man City fan said on X, external: "Haaland’s ability to just move on from his mistakes or misses is admirable."

Another fan on X, external, said: "Convinced this Haaland brother just misses penalties on purpose so he doesn’t get called a penalty merchant because what the hell."

Meanwhile, another fan called him the best forward in the world, on X, external: "Erling Braut Haaland is the best striker in the world and it’s not even a debate."

'O’Reilly best left-back in the league'

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Manchester City fans were full of praise for 20-year-old Nico O’Reilly after his impressive performance against Liverpool. Here are some of the best reactions from X.

One user on X, external, said: "I can’t remember the last time I saw anyone bully Salah the way O’Reilly has done to him today. Total pocketing."

Another Man City fan on X, external, said: "Nico O’Reilly, you have no right to be this good. I’m speechless. You made Mo Salah look like a Sunday League player while providing excellent forward runs. Our best academy graduate since Phil Foden."

Another City fan on X, external, said: "Nico O’Reilly has pocketed every single winger he's faced this season. Best left-back in the league."

'Guardiola reaching 1,000 games is really incredible'

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Steph Houghton

Former Manchester City and England captain on BBC 5 Live Breakfast

On Pep Guardiola reaching 1,000 games in management: "It's really incredible, and obviously the clubs that Pep Guardiola has managed as well, and the players that he's been able to improve along the way, is scary.

"The club put on an amazing kind of show yesterday, and obviously, the boys as well in terms of getting the win, but I think we all know that Pep is one of the best coaches in the world, and to be doing it for 1,000 games is so impressive."

'The way Liverpool were set up helped Doku shine'

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Danny Murphy

BBC Match of the Day pundit

Jeremy Doku was absolutely brilliant for Manchester City on Sunday, but Liverpool's tactics were the reason he was able to run riot down their right.

Without Mohamed Salah tracking back, Arne Slot's side were always so vulnerable down that flank and I felt sorry for Conor Bradley, who was trying to stop Doku but had Nico O'Reilly to worry about too.

Even if Liverpool had found some better balance, and had a winger who gave Bradley more defensive support or condensed City's space, then with the way Doku was playing he would still have been almost impossible to stop.

Doku was a pleasure to watch, irrespective of who you support and who you wanted to win. You had to admire his skill, pace, strength and bravery - and his goal was just amazing.

The way Liverpool were set up, though, actually helped him shine. He was electric and the game's star man. This was the best I've seen him play in a City shirt, but Salah not being asked to defend made it so easy for him.

It became a really productive area of the pitch for City, and was one of the reasons they won so comfortably in the end.

Doku’s best Man City performance so far?

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Tom McCoy

BBC Sport journalist

Match of the Day pundit Danny Murphy described Jeremy Doku’s display against Liverpool yesterday as probably “the best game he has ever had in a Manchester City shirt”, with the winger a constant source of danger in an emphatic 3-0 win.

City directed most of their attacks down the left flank to get the Belgian running at Liverpool’s right-back Conor Bradley, who effectively shackled Real Madrid danger man Vinicius Junior in midweek but found Doku an altogether tougher proposition.

Doku had 11 touches in the opposition box, at least five more than any other player from either side, and also led the way in several other metrics such as shots on target and chances created.

He also completed seven dribbles, the third highest figure by anyone in a Premier League match this season.

Statisticians Opta, meanwhile, have highlighted that Doku is the first player to score, win at least 10 duels, complete seven dribbles, create three chances and have three shots on target in a single Premier League game since Eden Hazard in 2019.

It was undoubtedly a virtuoso performance. The challenge for Doku is to hit these heady heights on a consistent basis.

'You think I'm Vini?!'

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Jeremy Doku's performance against Liverpool certainly didn't go under the radar as the winger was a constant thorn in Arne Slot's side. Here are some of the best reactions from fans online:

One Man City fan said on X, external: "Jeremy Doku is the Lionel Messi of Adama Traore's."

A fan page on X, external, said: "This is one of the great Premier League winger performances by Jeremy Doku. The 1v1 and 1v2 dribbling, then the world-class finish, too. Wow."

Another fan on X, external, said: "Doku is looking at Bradley in his eyes and saying, 'You think I’m Vini?!'"

Sunday's game came just a few days after Bradley shut down Vinicius Jr during Liverpool's Champions League win over Real Madrid at Anfield.

'Doku was the difference for Man City'

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Steph Houghton

Former Manchester City and England captain on BBC 5 Live Breakfast

"My hero is Jeremy Doku, just in terms of what he did yesterday for Manchester City. You're coming up against one of the best full-backs in the league, Conor Bradley, who performed unbelievably against Vinicius Jr this week, but I think Doku was just on another level yesterday.

"I think, no matter how much Liverpool tried to double up on him, he was always finding solutions, and I think he was the difference yesterday at the Etihad Stadium."

Doku's game by numbers

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Karan Vinod

BBC Sport Journalist

Jeremy Doku was electric for Manchester City as they brushed aside Liverpool to move second in the Premier League table behind Arsenal.

The Belgium winger was a constant menace down the left flank, scoring once and setting the tone with his relentless directness. Doku completed seven successful dribbles, won possession five times, and drew four fouls as Liverpool struggled to contain him.

With three shots on target, three chances created and a well-taken goal to cap off a dynamic display, Doku’s performance underlined why Pep Guardiola sees him as such a key part of City’s evolving attack this season.

'It is scary how full of confidence Doku is'

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Nigel Reo-Coker

Former Aston Villa midfielder on BBC Football Daily podcast

Manchester City were phenomenal and deserved to win. That was because of their application and the quality they showed.

It was the Jeremy Doku show. He was absolutely sensational. He has taken his game to a whole new level. He plays with maturity, a lot more discipline and impacts the game by creating goal opportunities.

He is playing with a smile on his face and a bit of an arrogance in himself because he knows he can affect the game. That will strike fear into a lot of teams in the Premier League because it is scary how full of confidence he is.

All over the pitch, City were the better side. It was the most balanced City have looked in a while because they kept their lines tight when usually thy leave themselves vulnerable with that high line.

Liverpool were sloppy and they never really looked a threat.

Guardiola reaches 1,000 games and 716 wins

Manchester City 3-0 Liverpool

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola took charge of his 1,000th game as a manager on Sunday, with his side’s 3-0 win against Liverpool the 716th victory of his coaching career.

He has won 388 of the 550 games since taking charge of City in 2016.

Guardiola began life as a manager at Barcelona B in 2007 and has gone on to lift 12 top-flight titles at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City, as well as three Champions League crowns.

The 54-year-old has lost only 128 matches so far, claiming another 14 cup victories during his illustrious career.

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