Four lessons from Liverpool’s 0-4 City capitulation before PSG quarter-final | OneFootball

Four days before travelling to the Parc des Princes, Liverpool were routed 0-4 by Manchester City in the FA Cup quarter-finals, exposing several concerns.

Liverpool impressed for roughly 35 minutes but unravelled once behind. “Given the way we defended in that spell, you simply cannot win a game,” said Arne Slot to the BBC. The press was late and disjointed, and Ibrahima Konaté was overpowered by Erling Haaland for City’s second.

Mohamed Salah, short of rhythm after a lay-off since 18 March, endured an error-strewn display. He pushed the ball too far on a clear opening at 0-0 then shot wide, later saw his penalty saved by James Trafford, and was withdrawn on 77 minutes.

Virgil Van Dijk conceded the penalty for the opener after being wrong-footed by Nico O’Reilly’s pivot. Less dominant and slow to react, he was involved in all four goals, beaten as City added a second before the interval, then by Antoine Semenyo and finally by Haaland.

With Alisson out since 18 March against Galatasaray, Giorgi Mamardachvili will start in Paris. The 1.97 m Georgian produced a fine long clearance at 0-0 that Salah failed to exploit, yet he was not decisive and his positioning was questioned on the third goal. Liverpool’s record with the Tbilisi native starting reads five wins and eight defeats.

Dominik Szoboszlai felt mindset and fight were lacking, saying nobody hit their maximum and he struggled for words. Amid the gloom, Hugo Ekitike stood out at the Etihad, combining neatly, drawing a yellow card for Rodri on 34 minutes, blasting over on 27, and winning the penalty after contact from Matheus Nunes.

Source: L'Équipe