Liverpool duo issue high praise on Pep Guardiola and Manchester City after Etihad Stadium win | OneFootball

Manchester City were handed high praise by Liverpool duo Mohamed Salah and Dominik Szoboszlai after the weekend’s victory for the Merseyside club at the Etihad.

Arne Slot and his players took a further significant stride towards winning their first Premier League title since the 2019/20 campaign, in a season that was hampered by Covid-19 restrictions and saw the Anfield side lift their crown behind-closed-doors.

As for Manchester City, it was yet another defeat in an increasingly challenging campaign that has already seen the club exit the Carabao Cup, UEFA Champions League, and the race for the English top-flight crown.

The priority for Pep Guardiola and his players will be to lift their performance levels immediately and end the season strongly in order to qualify for Champions League football next season and potentially win silverware through the FA Cup.

From the perspective of the Manchester City manager, the performance during the 0-2 defeat to Liverpool was a significant step in the right direction towards trying to get back to the heights that have won over 15 major trophies during the Catalan’s time in England.

Speaking in the aftermath of their 0-2 win in Premier League action on Sunday afternoon, standout star Mohamed Salah was keen to highlight the remarkable achievements of City in recent years, and insist on the difficulty of winning at the Etihad Stadium.

“It’s an incredibly hard place to win here (at the Etihad Stadium), a tough team, they have an incredible manager, they dominated the game, I think they can dominate any game here. But I’m glad in the end we managed to win the game,” the Egyptian told reporters.

The Liverpool forward continued, “Manchester City won four (Premier League titles) in a row now, it’s an incredible team.”

Salah’s teammate and fellow goalscorer from the weekend, Dominik Szoboszlai was also keen to point out the dominant nature of Manchester City’s performance across 90 minutes, particularly in possession of the football.

He explained, “Manchester City managed the game almost 90 per cent, but at the end the result is for us… We knew that’s going to happen and it’s part of the game; sometimes you don’t have all of the ball, especially against Manchester City away.”

Sunday afternoon’s meeting between the familiar on-field rivals will be their final clash of the season, with Liverpool already out of the FA Cup having lost to Manchester City’s fifth round opponents, Plymouth Argyle.