Like lions at feeding time: Inside Arne Slot’s tactical masterclass that turned Manchester City into a nervous wreck

When Mohamed Salah was waiting for the ghouls at Stockley Park to give him the green light to take his penalty, he was standing doing kick-ups with the ball like he was chilling in the back garden.

If one single moment highlighted the confidence of this Liverpool squad, that was it. Some may call it arrogance, others would say swagger. And it was at complete contrast to Manchester City, who were a nervous wreck throughout.

From a matter of seconds into this match, it was clear that Liverpool smelt blood. 

Rio Ferdinand compared them to ‘hungry Rottweilers’ on Wednesday night after the Reds beat the great Real Madrid. This was more like lions during feeding time at the zoo.

The champions hobbled into this match like a wounded animal — and Arne Slot’s men were ready to pounce. Although it took them 12 minutes to draw blood, Liverpool were toying with their opponents and constantly landing punches.

City are on the worst run of Pep Guardiola’s career and came into this match as the underdogs with the bookies for the first time in seven years — but this must not take any shine off the tactical masterclass from Slot.

He may sport the best poker face in football, with his post-match press conferences always full of straight-batted replies, but inside he must be elated with pride at the finest week of his career: 2-0 against the 15-time champions of Europe, then 2-0 against a side which has held a monopoly on English football for the last seven years.

Given the form Liverpool are in, Slot could have probably got away with a simple ‘same again, please lads’ as his pre-match team talk. But instead, he changed his tactics and personnel again to thwart his great idol Guardiola.

Luis Diaz moved into a No 9 position and dropped deep into pockets of space to leave the wingers with room to exploit in behind. 

In-form Curtis Jones made only the bench and, in return, Dominik Szoboszlai put in an effervescent display as the all-action No 10.

After about 15 minutes, there was a feeling that this could be a hammering for the ages. Some home fans may have been cursing for their side to go for the proverbial jugular but Slot took a more measured approach which saw them remain solid at the other end.

It reminded one of a day observing training in the searing heat of Philadelphia in July, when Slot would shout ‘kill them with passes’, ‘don’t force it’ and ‘patience’. All three maxims shone through here, especially in the first half, as City were left chasing shadows.

Alexis Mac Allister and Co set the tempo with those intricate short passes, but Slot’s men were also more direct than usual. Trent Alexander-Arnold was central to that.

Like a quarterback in American football, the Scouser got on the ball from deep and dictated play. Taking out the fact he was given a hard time by substitute Jeremy Doku, this was an imperious display from Alexander-Arnold on his first appearance for nearly a month.

He set Salah moving for the first goal and continued to spray those passes that caused City all manner of problems.

The first half felt like a mullering but Guardiola’s men grew in presence — if not confidence — after the break and needed their steely defence to ensure Caoimhin Kelleher had nothing of note to do until the closing stages.

Virgil van Dijk again stated his case to be the world’s best defender with a commanding display against Erling Haaland, while Joe Gomez deserves a mountain of credit for an assured performance on his first league start of the season.

It is easy to forget that Gomez was not even a substitute on the campaign opener at Ipswich but, after starting the season as fourth-choice centre back, he must now prove his worth to Slot with Ibrahima Konate unlikely to be seen on the pitch this side of Christmas.

So, were there any positives to take home for City? Well, this was not the embarrassment many fans feared. In keeping the scores down, they leave with a semblance of respect — but saying that about this all-conquering squad seems a patronising statement.

City’s defence was not the issue here, as it had been in recent weeks. It was a complete lack of belief in their own ability at the other end. A group of genuinely elite stars playing like they were in a relegation battle.

Haaland barely had a sniff, Bernardo Silva always took several touches too many and Matheus Nunes — who has been good in recent matches — looked like he was scared to run at his man.

There were times when space appeared to be there to exploit but City’s stars would turn back and the chance was gone. 

Guardiola believes this helps avoid counter-attacks, but watching City attack felt like playing a video game when the internet is lagging.

Doku came on and caused a stir but lacked end product, while Phil Foden is playing like a shadow of the man who set the league alight last term.

‘Every little thing is gonna be all right,’ sang the away end — as they often have in the past. Right now every little thing is all wrong.

The mark of a great fighter is how often they get up off the canvas and City will rise again. But they have thrown the towel in on this title race and their opponent, Slot and Liverpool, are landing knockout blows like Muhammad Ali in his prime.