The Tactics That Made This A Classic

TL;DR

Liverpool dominated the second half by exploiting City's pressing gaps, while City's free-form fullback shape created first-half overloads.

Key Points

• 1.City's fullbacks pushed high and wide without inverting, freeing their wingers to drift infield and create central overloads that pulled Liverpool's defensive shape apart in the first half.
• 2.The left-side 2v1 (Aurić overlapping with a tucked-in winger) trapped Liverpool in a dilemma — Salah couldn't track back without sacrificing a counterattacking threat, giving City free progression down both flanks.
• 3.Bernardo Silva repeatedly found space between Liverpool's lines because Vertz pressed high and Mactallister backed up, leaving massive central gaps that City's rotations (Gravenbrch/Szoboszlai swaps) exploited.
• 4.City's O'Reilly adjusted mid-game from aggressive pressing to a hybrid position, sitting on Gravenberch and only pressing late when Alisson played to the right back, preventing Liverpool from exploiting the exposed midfield.
• 5.Liverpool's second-half fix was Vertz drifting wider to exploit flanks, Trent Kirk operating as a traditional fullback to overload City's narrow 4-4-2, and better patience in buildup to punish O'Reilly's high press timing.