In the Premier League season’s first superderby , as it was reckoned all over the globe, Liverpool welcomed Manchester City in what was from the start of the competition planned to be the battle for the trophy. The two teams are clearly the most serious contenders for the first place at the end of the season, and this duel brought one of them closer to the final goal.
Jürgen Klopp’s tactics were good enough to secure a win for his side and to make the visitors struggle at Anfield, even though they also missed out on luck when it comes to the final 3-1 result for the home team. This tactical analysis will show you how the Reds manage to get away with the very important triumph and how they created a bigger point gap between them and their biggest competitors.
Lineups
The host coach went into the game with his usual 4-3-3 tactics and with no surprises in the starting eleven. As Joel Matip wasn’t fit to play in this fixture, Dejan Lovren filled in his shoes and played alongside Virgil van Dijk in the centre of their defence. Fabinho was the man in control of the midfield, together with Georginio Wijnaldum and Jordan Henderson who provided him with help. Their deadly trio – Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané was once again playing up front, and was the key threat for Claudio Bravo’s goal.
Pep Guardiola set his team in the 4-2-3-1 formation which was slightly different from what we were used to seeing from them. He decided to go in with the double pivot embodied in İlkay Gündoğan and Rodri, while Kevin de Bruyne was playing as a number ten. Bernardo Silva on the right-hand side with Raheem Sterling on the opposite were the two wingers, and Sergio Agüero was the link-up striker.
![PSG Vs Lille [3–0] – Ligue 1 2025/2026: Why LOSC Failed To Exploit PSG Defensive Weaknesses – Tactical Analysis](https://totalfootballanalysis.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/PSG-Vs-Lille-20252026-350x250.png "PSG Vs Lille [3–0] – Ligue 1 2025/2026: Ruthless Efficiency Versus Attacking Waste – Tactical Analysis 3")
