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Arne Slot demanded a repeat of Liverpool’s display versus Real Madrid when the title holders visit Manchester City this weekend. For Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior on Tuesday, read Erling Haaland on Sunday. Shutting down one more of the world's best attackers, and keeping a third clean sheet in a row, would reinforce the manager's declaration that Liverpool remain in the chase for the biggest prizes.

Perfect Remedy for Recent Woes

Their European win over Xabi Alonso’s La Liga pace-setters, who had 13 victories from 14 games before their arrival at Anfield, was an ideal solution for a Liverpool team looking to heal the wounds of a difficult spell of his tenure. Additionally, it served as excellent groundwork for what awaits at the Etihad Stadium: a rival that prefers to attack, that will not sit in a defensive block and carries an obvious, rampant threat.

“There will be some similarities,” stated Virgil van Dijk, who dominated Haaland at Anfield the previous campaign. “We're up against a high-flying side like today and a striker, like today, who was in form. When that happens you have to be spot-on and I think we showed we were good as a team defensively.”

Reasons for Success

The manager's reasons for why things went right against Madrid as well as Villa last weekend – aligned with his analysis of the earlier struggles during a run of six defeats in seven matches. Additional rest, not conceding first, and better conditioning of players such as Alexis Mac Allister and Conor Bradley following disrupted preparations were cited. They backed up his previous arguments and choice to prioritize less the Carabao Cup by using rotated players against Crystal Palace.

• The comeback of last season’s midfield core of Dominik Szoboszlai, Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch boosted the defense to Liverpool’s defense.
• The welcome reappearance at full-back of Andy Robertson, who has started the last three victories, restored calmness and authority to a back four.
• Florian Wirtz impressed again in the Champions League but not from the No 10 role he usually plays in the Premier League.

Dominant Display

Szoboszlai was again Liverpool’s engine in the centre. His national team skipper is excelling this season and has established himself as a leader in Slot’s side.

“Dom is consistently reliable,” commented Van Dijk. “He is very important. The work rate he brings on the pitch is remarkable, the skill that he has is exceptional and he is developing with every outing.”

Looking Ahead

Szoboszlai started up front alongside Curtis Jones and scored at the Etihad last season as Liverpool surprised City by adopting a 4-2-2-2. Victory on that February day took Liverpool well ahead at the summit with 11 games to play. This weekend they will be playing catch-up but, as the manager emphasized after beating Real, there is plenty of road left for Liverpool to mount a comeback.