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Manchester City produced a vibrant attacking display at the Etihad on Saturday, battering 10-man Liverpool 5-0.
With new-signing Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain watching on from the Liverpool bench, the hosts took the lead on 24 minutes, with Sergio Aguero firing past Simon Mignolet.
However, the real turning point in the game came before half-time, with Sadio Mané shown a straight red after a high and dangerous challenge on Ederson.
The City ‘keeper underwent a prolonged period of treatment after the clash before eventually being replaced by Claudio Bravo.
The Citizens were quick to make the most of their one-man advantage, scoring deep into first-half injury time via a Gabriel Jesus header, with Kevin De Bruyne providing his second assist of the game.
In the second-half, Liverpool had no answer to their hosts, with their defence looking worryingly weak against City’s star-studded attack.
On 53 minutes, Gabriel Jesus netted his second of the game to put the visitors in the driving seat.
A rampant City would score two more goals, courtesy of sub Leroy Sane, firstly converting a Benjamin Mendy centre before curling a fabulous left-footed effort into the top corner.
The win sees Pep Guardiola’s side go second in the table, level on points with Man Utd and looking good for a serious title tilt.As for Liverpool, while the dismissal of Mané was a huge factor in the game, the flimsiness of the Reds’ defence could well hamper their own title hopes.