Joel Matip and Joe Gomez, defenders for Liverpool, have received praise from Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola for their strength and speed.
In his post-game press conference, Guardiola stated that Erling Haaland faced a difficult challenge last night against the defensive pairing.
Haaland did open the scoring in the 3-2 victory, which saw City take the lead three times before finally giving up comebacks.
Liverpool lost control of the trophy they won at Wembley last year, so they will now play Southampton in the quarterfinals.
Gomez and Matip are praised by Guardiola
When asked about Haaland’s progress in getting back in shape, Guardiola said: “(Haaland) scored a great goal today, helped us a lot, and fought against Matip and Gomez, who are so strong and quick as well. So that’s why it’s the next step.
He had been exhausted for at least 75 minutes.
Last night, Liverpool played without Virgil van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and their backup right-back James Milner, who was injured in the first half.
No team will find that easy, but Liverpool will be unhappy with the type of goals they gave up, especially Nathan Ake’s winning goal.
The strength of City’s team and their desire to get started right away after the World Cup were demonstrated last night.
When the Premier League season resumes, Liverpool needs to find the consistency that has eluded them thus far this season.
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