‘The way Liverpool were set up helped Doku shine’published at 09:40 GMT
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.
