Liverpool 0-3 Manchester City: Gravenberch dismissal flips the script at Anfield

Liverpool were brushed aside 3-0 by Manchester City at Anfield, with all three goals arriving after Ryan Gravenberch's 62nd-minute dismissal for a second bookable offence — a clumsy challenge on the back of Jeremy Doku. City, playing for the first time since being found guilty of breaching the Premier League's financial regulations, struck twice in the six minutes that followed, through Erling Haaland and Doku, before Rayan Cherki capped the win with a stunning finish from a flowing team move.

The result dealt Liverpool their first loss under Andoni Iraola, and the captain Virgil van Dijk made clear where the contest turned. "The first half was good from us," Van Dijk told Sky Sports. "We showed our intensity; could've done better on occasions where we got on the break. They weren't massive chances, but we showed we wanted to win, and we had intensity, which is the bare minimum."

"Second half, the red card changed the game, especially when you concede quickly afterwards. We end up with 10 men is the fact, and we concede quickly after, and it becomes a difficult game against them again," he added. "I think the atmosphere is always good here; I've been fortunate to play in a lot of big games here. For other players, maybe it was different, but for me, I was ready to compete, and I think we showed that, especially in the first half."

Iraola, whose side had been the better team for an hour, was similarly blunt. "I think it's obvious. We've played two games," he told Sky Sports. "One game until the 60th minute, and then another game after the red card. We were the best team in the first game, and then they were better."

The manager was also aggrieved by the officiating that led to the sending-off. "The first one [Gravenberch booking] is not a yellow. [Elliot] Anderson carries on a couple of steps; he wasn't even going to give a foul. I've no idea why he gives a yellow card. We have like nine players behind the ball." Iraola added: "It's already difficult to press them when it's 11 v 11, but with one less, it becomes a different game, and then we concede straight away before making a substitution. You have to play differently when you're 1-0 down."

A damning record at home

The 3-0 reverse was Liverpool's joint-biggest defeat at Anfield in the Premier League, matching 4-1 losses to Chelsea (October 2005) and City (February 2021) and 3-0 defeats to West Ham (August 2015) and Nottingham Forest (November 2025). The Reds have now gone winless in five successive home league games (D4 L1) for the fourth time, and the first since March 2021 (eight).

Iraola suffered his first Premier League defeat in 24 games (W10 D13) since losing 3-2 against Arsenal when he was in charge of Bournemouth back in January. He has lost five times to City in the competition, his joint-most defeats to a single club (also five against Liverpool). Liverpool are also winless in eight Premier League games when facing the team starting the day top of the table (D6 L2), their second-worst run behind nine matches (2002 to 2008).

Pundits had questioned the decision

The reaction to Gravenberch's dismissal was not limited to the dugout. In coverage published on 12 October, Jamie Carragher called the red card "a shocking decision" and the award of the first yellow "a joke", telling Sky Sports: "The game changed on the red card. We have to be truthful about that. City delivered after the red card changed the game. Prior to that, it was very even." Micah Richards was equally puzzled by the initial caution: "That is soft. How is that a yellow card? I don't understand." Roy Keane and Daniel Sturridge, in separate coverage also dated 12 October, said the dismissal decided a game that had been even for an hour, with City extending their 100 per cent start to the Premier League season.

Injury concerns managed

Liverpool were without three key players in Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai ahead of a busy run of fixtures. Iraola, though, played down fears of a lengthy absence. "They are not too big injuries, but we travel to Austria in two days [to face LASK in the Champions League]," he said. "It will be difficult; they are ready for the next one."