Man City Beat Liverpool 3-0 Amid Storm of Criticism at Anfield

Despite the hostile atmosphere Liverpool created at Anfield in Sunday's tense match, table-toppers Manchester City had the last laugh with an impressive 3-0 victory, maintaining their perfect start to the Premier League season.

The focus of the controversy was off the pitch, as Man City returned to action following a shocking ruling by an independent commission that found they had breached more than 100 of the Premier League's financial rules.

Enzo Maresca's side could hardly have picked a worse venue to return after the guilty verdict. For years, Anfield has been a place that greets Man City with fury.

How Man City made their own 'statement'

This past Sunday, the bitterness reached its peak with flags reading "cheats" and "114 charges," commonly seen among merchandise on sale.

But even as red smoke engulfed Merseyside and chants of "Cheating bastards" rang around the stadium, nothing could throw the resilient Manchester side off course. They turned the game around in just six minutes of the second half.

Ryan Gravenberch was sent off in the 62nd minute, reducing Liverpool to 10 men.

Man City capitalized on the numerical advantage as Erling Haaland and Jeremy Doku scored in quick succession before Rayan Cherki sealed the scoreline, silencing Anfield's raucous Kop.

"The players haven't had it easy over the past two or three weeks, but they handled the situation very well," Maresca said after the match.

"I said during the week that we need to learn to deal with the noise outside but we have to make our own statement – that's winning. Our fans were singing at the end, so the statement came from us."

Haaland, the Premier League's top scorer this season with six goals, was close to tears after the win. He called it a "lovely moment" and said it would stay with Man City through a difficult period for a long time.

"It's time to be strong and stick together, to do what we can control – that's sticking together," he added.

Man City win, but Premier League mired in uncertainty

While Man City emerged unscathed from Sunday's hostile encounter, the victory only highlighted the uncertainty hanging over the rest of the Premier League season.

Maresca's side top the table with 18 points and a perfect record. However, those results could mean nothing if Man City – who deny any financial wrongdoing – fail to successfully appeal against the guilty verdict.

No punishment has yet been decided, but if Man City's appeal fails, potential penalties include a significant points deduction and expulsion from the Premier League. There is even the prospect of Man City's three Premier League titles from 2009-2018 – the period covered by the charges – being stripped.

The guilty verdict on a series of financial breaches therefore raises questions about all of Man City's results and what they mean for other clubs.

"This is really bad for the Premier League, and it's going to drag on for months," former Manchester United captain and now pundit Gary Neville told Sky Sports.

Earlier, Liverpool manager Andoni Iraola stressed that "uncertainty is not good for anyone," while former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher expressed hope that the appeal process would not drag on for months.

"There's no way this can go on until the end of the season because we're all being deceived," Carragher said.

There is also the debate over Man City's past successes. Former Manchester United captain Roy Keane argued that any title Man City win while committing financial breaches would be hard to celebrate.

"Some people might think that's a bit harsh, but I wouldn't feel worthy of a title if I thought something shady was going on behind the scenes. Absolutely not," he said.

"We talk about players going out there, giving everything and getting injured… but that's your job. However, you hope everyone is on the same page, honest and doing things properly."

What next for Man City and the Premier League?

Just as Man City's players rushed to celebrate at the final whistle, Anfield's DJ played Fleetwood Mac's "Little Lies" over the loudspeakers.

Many will see it as Liverpool and their fans' final act of defiance, but it certainly won't be the last hostile reception Man City face at stadiums across England and beyond this season.

From now on, every time a team loses to Man City, their players and fans may feel they have been robbed of their efforts.

That is the current state of the Premier League when the best team is also the most controversial.

Much of this stems from the uncertainty facing Man City and the other 19 clubs in the top flight. What next? What punishments, if any, await Man City? Will they be stripped of titles?

"The Premier League has delivered its verdict, but we know these things take time," a Liverpool fan told Al Jazeera outside Anfield on Sunday. "Hopefully it won't take years to find out what the final outcome is.

"It's heartbreaking. As a Liverpool fan of more than 20 years, we've come close many times, reached 98 points, missed by one point. Those are fine margins… We could have had 22 Premier League titles."