Manchester City beat Liverpool 3-0 at Anfield, ending Andoni Iraola's unbeaten start
Liverpool lost 3-0 to Manchester City at Anfield in a Premier League match on 11 October 2026, and the defeat ended Andoni Iraola's unbeaten start as Liverpool manager. The game turned decisively after Ryan Gravenberch was sent off in the 62nd minute, with Manchester City scoring three times after the red card.
Liverpool had been largely competitive against a Manchester City side that arrived on Merseyside with a 100 per cent record, but Iraola framed the match as two distinct contests in his post-match remarks. He said: "We played two different games. One until the red card, and then after. "For 60 minutes, the players were very good. The second game from the red card was where City were better than us." His unbeaten start is now over. This was actually his first Premier League defeat in 24 games (W10, D13) since January, including his time at Bournemouth.
Home form was highlighted as a broader concern: Liverpool are winless in three Premier League home matches this season, although they have recorded wins at Anfield in the Champions League and the Carabao Cup. The club's current league winless stretch at Anfield extends back to last season, leaving them winless in five successive Premier League home games (D4 L1), and this run at Anfield is one of just two occasions that has happened in the club's history.
Former Liverpool defender Stephen Warnock aired criticism on BBC Radio 5 Live, saying: "The best teams in the world are also horrible to play against. Liverpool aren't horrible. "They're an easy touch at the moment. They have too many players that are nice and they have to change that part of things. "Liverpool have got a lot of work to do. "They don't have enough leaders at the moment, apart from Virgil van Dijk barking orders." Ex-Man United midfielder Paul Scholes told The Good, the Bad and the Football podcast in September: "When you go to Liverpool, especially when Jurgen Klopp was there, the crowd played such a major part. It feels like that's gone… I don't think the fans are quite on board at the minute with what's happening there. "When we used to go there, I'd think, 'how are we going to get the ball?', because they were on top of you. Teams seem to have a lot more possession and look a bit more comfortable than they ever have." Nicky Butt added: "The likes of Fulham five years ago are going to Anfield and they're beaten before they even go up the steps."
The match represented Liverpool's joint-biggest Premier League defeat at Anfield and underlined shortcomings in the final third. Liverpool have scored just seven goals this season, only twice at Anfield, and only seven teams have managed fewer, while Manchester City have scored 16 this season — more than double Liverpool's tally.
Injury absences were visible in the crowd as Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo and Dominik Szoboszlai watched from the Main Stand; those three have contributed six of Liverpool's seven league goals this season. Lewis Koumas was highlighted for his work rate on the day but was noted as lacking a decisive finishing touch at this level. Summer signings Florian Wirtz and Bradley Barcola, signed for a combined fee reported in the article as over £100m, failed to produce a match-winning moment; Wirtz spurned a chance in the 55th minute when he shot from a position that had Milos Kerkez and Barcola in space to his left and fired wide.
Iraola reflected on the experience after the game, saying: "You learn a lot in games like today," and added: "I am very proud of my players. They put the work rate and everything in today. It's a loss and we didn't get anything from the performance but I liked it a lot." The report also noted that "deep down, Iraola will know there is a lot of work to do and getting the big money signings to deliver will be high on his agenda."
Liverpool now sit ninth in the Premier League and have won twice on the road this season; their goal-scoring record and ongoing home struggles at Anfield are immediate challenges for the remainder of the campaign.
