Manchester City have been warned to expect a hostile reception at Anfield this weekend, with pundits predicting a difficult afternoon for the Premier League champions.
Premier League action resumes after the international break with Sunday's clash between Liverpool and Manchester City. Both teams remain unbeaten, and new managers Arne Slot and Enzo Maresca will face off for the first time in a fixture that has often defined title races.
City's financial verdict adds spice
This will be City's first match since being found guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League's financial regulations, a verdict the club has appealed. Jamie Carragher believes this, combined with the history between the two clubs, will intensify the atmosphere.
"They will get a very hot reception, but that is always the same when Man City come to Anfield," Carragher said on The Overlap podcast. "Liverpool and Man City have been the two teams going for the titles and the big trophies over the last decade or so. They have got a really poor record at Anfield really for such a great team."
Carragher and Neville predict a tough test
Carragher added: "That is because of the atmosphere and they have found it difficult. I don't think this will be any different, and there will be an extra spice to it. All eyes will be watching this game and it should be a cracker."
He also suggested City could struggle for the rest of the season: "I think it will be very difficult for City now this season in terms of going on to achieve anything. Of course there might be sanctions as the season goes on, but every away ground that they go to will be the best atmosphere in that stadium that season. Everyone is baying for blood, so it will be very difficult for their players and manager to achieve anything."
Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville echoed those concerns, predicting a "brutal day" for City. "If they want an understanding of how angry the game is going to be, then Anfield will tell them," Neville said. "Like you would never believe. I suspect there may be banners, there will certainly be chanting. There will be a reception for them like you have never seen. It will be a brutal day."
Previous Anfield trouble
City are familiar with a hostile Anfield. In April 2018, before a Champions League quarter-final, their team bus was damaged when Liverpool fans threw bottles and fireworks at the coach as it arrived at the ground. Liverpool issued an apology condemning the violence, and Merseyside Police released a statement about the damage to the bus.
