- Jesus bags brace
- Aguero makes history
- Ederson stretchered off
- Mane sent off
- De Bruyne with two assists
Gabriel Jesus scored twice as Manchester City poured past 10-man Liverpool 5-0 at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
Sergio Aguero had a goal and an assist, Kevin De Bruyne had two assists, and Benjamin Mendy cued up Sane for City’s 77th minute goal before Sane added a second.
City goes first for the moment with 10 points, while Liverpool remains on seven and sinks fifth on goal differential. For City boss Pep Guardiola, it’s a first win over Jurgen Klopp.
Sadio Mane was sent off for a 37th minute challenge on charging City goalkeeper Ederson, as the winger’s attempt to beat the keeper to a loose ball saw the keeper kicked in the face.
[ MORE: Watch full PL match replays ]
Liverpool won a corner within the first 90 seconds after Alberto Moreno had a go with Mohamed Salah’s early square ball, but Ederson collected the corner.
At the other end, Gabriel Jesus turned a free kick wide of the goal post with a header. We were off.
Salah then nutmegged Nicolas Otamendi on the edge of the 18 and was cleaned out by the Argentine defender, giving Liverpool a dangerous free kick from the right edge of the 18.
It led to nothing and Kevin De Bruyne carried 50 yards to test Simon Mignolet with a low offering.
A spell of Liverpool possession was broken up by a De Bruyne-won free kick on the right edge of the 18 which put Trent Alexander-Arnold in the referee’s book, but the Reds held strong against City’s opportunity.
Aguero scored in his sixth-straight Etihad Stadium appearance versus Liverpool, rounding Mignolet from De Bruyne’s through ball to make it 1-0.
Fernandinho then saw yellow for hacking down a dribbling Sadio Mane in the 28th minute. It provided a promising 18-yard free kick, but Emre Can sent his offering wide of the far post.
Ederson denied Salah at the half-hour mark, as the Egyptian kept asking the City keeper questions.
A jitterbug dribble from Jesus forced Mignolet to concede a 35th minute corner, but John Stones missed his terrific chance to make it 2-0.
That’s when Mane clipped Ederson, and saw red. City had a goal pulled back for an offside Jesus moments after the match restarted, but then pounded ahead through another De Bruyne to Jesus goal.
[ MORE: Latest Premier League standings ]
29 - Since his Man City debut in September 2015, no player has more @premierleague assists than Kevin De Bruyne. Delivery. pic.twitter.com/itB5QWGIuS
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) September 9, 2017
[ MORE: Full lineups, stats, box score ]
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain entered the match for a Liverpool debut, and promptly saw his team concede when Fernandinho found Aguero with a terrific pass and the Argentine deferred to his Brazilian teammate for a left-footed finish.
With the match done and dusted, as evidenced by the plethora of subs from each side ahead of this week’s UEFA Champions League matches, Mendy raced up the left of the pitch and found Sane for a class finish.
Sane found a sliding Aguero for what could’ve been 5-0 if not for a splayed Mignolet.
The youngster completed the scoring with a left-footed beauty from atop the 18.