Gary Neville breaks his own rule as Man City hammer Liverpool in title race boost

Manchester City star Jeremy Doku's sensational display against Liverpool in the Premier League prompted Sky Spots pundit Gary Neville to break tradition

Gary Neville admitted he did something he never usually does during Manchester City's dominant Premier League win over Liverpool. Goals from Erling Haaland, Nico Gonzalez and Jeremy Doku at Etihad Stadium handed Pep Guardiola a huge victory on his 1000th game as a manager.

The victory has taken City up to second in the Premier League table, four points behind leaders Arsenal. The final outcome could have been very different however, if Virgil van Dijk's header was not disallowed for offside.

Neville made his feelings perfectly clear on the incident with former Premier League referee Mike Dean disagreeing with his verdict.

"I think he is outside the eyeline of the goalkeeper," he admitted on Sky Sports. "The goalkeeper is not getting anywhere near that. He had a clear line of sight."

Dean replied: "I kind of agree with you there guys," he said. "The only thing I would say is that because he's in the six-yard area of the penalty area, with him being in front of the keeper as he heads the ball. It's been given offside on the field, it's an offside decision."

City took advantage of that favourable decision before the interval as Gonzalez fired in an effort from distance via a deflection off Van Dijk. Haaland had put City in front earlier in the half despite missing an early penalty.

Doku secured the points in style for the hosts with an excellent long-range curling effort after driving inside from the right. Neville was particularly blown away by his strike which prompted him to break a rule he has as a pundit.

Speaking on his goal, Neville said: "It is dazzling from Doku! I've never given the man-of-the-match award out after 62 minutes, but l think l will today. He has been sensational."

As the clocked ticked down, Neville issued a very clear title verdict with City having won seven of their last eight Premier League matches.

"It was about which of these two clubs were going to emerge as Arsenal's nearest challengers and could they send a message to the Gunners," he said.

"Pep Guardiola, in his 1000th game as a manager, his team and his staff, have done that. It's a really good day for Guardiola and Man City, but it's a difficult day for Arne Slot and Liverpool."

Here at the Manchester Evening News, we’re dedicated to bringing you the best Manchester City coverage and analysis.

Make sure you don’t miss out on the latest City news by joining our free WhatsApp group. You can get all the breaking news and best analysis sent straight to your phone by clicking here to subscribe.

You can also subscribe to our free newsletter service. Click here to be sent all the day’s biggest stories.

And finally, if you’d rather listen to our expert analysis then make sure to check out our Talking City podcast. Our shows are available on all podcast platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and you can also watch along on YouTube.