Man City Beat Liverpool 3-0 in First Match After Financial Breach Verdict

Manchester City shrugged off the threat of severe punishment to beat 10-man Liverpool 3-0 in their first match since being found to have breached more than 100 Premier League financial rules.

Second-half goals from Erling Haaland, Jeremy Doku and Rayan Cherki on Sunday extended City's perfect start under manager Enzo Maresca after Ryan Gravenberch was sent off for a second yellow card.

The win restored City's three-point lead at the top of the table, but the future of any title race depends on the outcome of the club's appeal against the sweeping financial breaches.

An independent commission found that City and their UAE owners arranged "sham" deals to inflate revenue and reduce costs by more than £900 million ($1.2 billion) between 2009 and 2018.

No punishment has yet been handed down, but a heavy points deduction or even expulsion from English football's top division is under consideration unless City overturn the decision.

There has even been speculation about possible retrospective action to strip titles.

The Premier League rule breaches occurred repeatedly during a period in which City won three titles and a host of other trophies.

Yet City's rivals believe the illegal spending of that era also laid the foundation for a golden age under former manager Pep Guardiola, who left at the end of last season.

Liverpool were among the clubs hit hardest, finishing runners-up to City three times in the past 12 years.

"There are a lot of moments and memories we can't get back," Martin Reilly, 23, a Liverpool fan, told AFP. "They have to be punished properly."

City arrived at the stadium under police escort with a hostile reception expected at Anfield, but there was no repeat of the violence when the team bus was pelted with bottles before a 2018 Champions League match.

Liverpool fans lined the streets to greet the visitors with chants of "cheats" and "you're going down," while souvenir stalls were filled with flags and scarves mocking City's financial scandal.

On the iconic Kop behind one goal, a banner read: "a generation of fans lied to."

Clashes between Guardiola's City and Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool in recent years had become the Premier League's marquee fixture.

But with the world watching, Liverpool could not rise to the occasion.

New Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola's options were limited by the absence of the injured Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexander Isak and Cody Gakpo, handing the Spaniard his first defeat since taking charge.

The hosts flickered briefly early in the second half when Lewis Koumas was denied by Gianluigi Donnarumma on his first Premier League start.

The Abu Dhabi-backed takeover in 2008 transformed City from a mid-table side into the dominant force in English football.

City's financial muscle was on clear display as Maresca was able to bring Jeremy Doku off the bench early in the second half.

Within minutes, the Belgian winger was fouled by Gravenberch, who received a harsh second yellow card, and Liverpool never recovered.

Doku's deflected shot was then turned in by Haaland to break the deadlock 25 minutes from time, opening the floodgates.

Three minutes later, Doku curled a superb effort into the top corner himself.

Cherki then exchanged a quick one-two with Josko Gvardiol before lifting the ball past Alisson Becker to compound Liverpool's misery.

City midfielder Eliot Anderson told reporters after the match that his side had shown "courage" to win in a hostile atmosphere.

"We showed unity and fight, it's a difficult place to come and we showed courage," he said.

"The noise [from the Anfield stands] was more than usual... when you arrive and in the first 10 minutes of the first half, but we silenced the crowd and improved in the second half.

"During the game you can feel it, and this is a match where you have to stick together and we did that."