Stefan Ortega has been criticised for comments made after Manchester City were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool at Anfield.

Manchester City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega has received backlash for comments he made about Liverpool after the 2-0 defeat at Anfield on Sunday.

Ortega started the fixture in place of regular goalkeeper Ederson in a surprise decision from Pep Guardiola, who was attempting to stop City from suffering a fourth consecutive defeat in the Premier League.

But it didn’t quite happen, with Cody Gakpo opening the scoring early on before Mo Salah bagged a second from the spot after Ortega brought down Luis Diaz in the area.

Defending Premier League champions City have now gone a remarkable seven games without a win to drop to fifth in the table and Guardiola was subjected to chants of “you’re getting sacked in the morning” by Liverpool fans.

The Catalan responded by holding up six fingers to refer to the amount of Premier League titles he has won since taking the City job in 2016. Ortega was asked about it in a post-match interview and said he had heard that Liverpool “is probably not the best part of the UK” – a comment which many branded “tasteless” and “nasty”.

Asked if Guardiola’s gesture would urge City players to “prove people wrong”, Ortega told talkSPORT: “Probably. Someone told me before that this area is probably not the best part of the UK. Yeah, I think the manager reacted really well.”

Guardiola’s antics evoked memories of Jose Mourinho boasting of his trophies and had fans claiming he had “lost his head”. After the game, the City boss addressed his gesture and admitted he was surprised that Anfield erupted in the “sacked” chants.

“I didn’t expect Anfield to start chanting at 0-2 that I would be sacked,” Guardiola said.

“Maybe I deserved to be sacked with our results. Maybe I’m still in the job because I won six Premier Leagues and a lot of titles.

“They want to sack me. I wish they were more kind. Why didn’t they do it at 0-1? Why didn’t they do it last season when we won the Premier League?

“Why do they want to sack me now? I didn’t expect that from Anfield, for other clubs like Brighton I can understand it. But for Anfield I didn’t expect this, maybe it is the respect we have. They know we have won six Premier Leagues. But it’s fine, it’s part of the game.”

City are back in action on Wednesday when the host Nottingham Forest, who are just one point and one place behind them in the Premier League table after 13 games.

Liverpool earned a 2-0 win over Man City to tighten their grip on the Premier League title race.

Pep Guardiola responds to Manchester City’s 2-0 defeat to Liverpool at Anfield.

Pep Guardiola admits some people will call him “delusional” after suggesting Manchester City’s performance in their defeat to Liverpool could be a turning point in their season. But the City boss admits the Reds were deserved winners as they extending their lead at the top of the Premier League.

An early Cody Gakpo strike and Mohamed Salah’s second-half penalty earned a 2-0 win for Arne Slot’s side at Anfield on Sunday afternoon.

Liverpool are now nine points clear at the summit with champions Manchester City now a whopping 11 points behind.

And Guardiola said: “We congratulate Liverpool for a well-deserved victory. The first 15-20 minutes we experienced like many other times coming here in our prime. We suffered, they deserved the goal.

“After, we take the game. I know some people don’t like the line-ups but we cannot compete against Liverpool and many, many other clubs that are transitional teams.

“I love wingers but we wanted more control because we know when they lose it they immediately contact with Salah or Luiz or Gakpo or later Nunez. They are so fast, quicker, stronger than us in that position in a game.

“I have the feeling that from here we start to build something. Call me delusional but I have the feeling that from here we will start to build back to winning games and confidence.”

Guardiola added: “If today we give up when you come to Anfield, you go home with a terrible result. The team was there all the time, resilient in the bad moments knowing what was going to happen because we have experienced many times and that they could not drop and be negative.

“The last 15-20 minutes in the first half and the second half for the first 25-30 minutes the game was what we wanted without the threat that we expected to create with our passes. We didn’t create much. You have to play games to create chances and we don’t have it.

“Thank you to Bernardo (Silva), Manu (Nunes), Rico (Lewis) to play in a position that they’re not used to to fight against Gravenberch, his first control is amazing, and then the next line of Mac Allister and Szoboszlai and later Jones. We made an incredible effort.”

City have now lost six of their last seven games in all competitions and have been beaten four times in succession in the Premier League, extending their worst run under Guardiola.

“Our target cannot be talking about titles in November or December but we didn’t do it when we were top of the league,” said the City boss.

“At the end, we are not far away from Arsenal or teams there but Liverpool win all the games in the Champions League and in the Premier League have just lost one here. That means how good they are doing. All we can do is congratulate them and learn from Liverpool.

“I lived better before than now. Even the taste of the wine was better. But I am incredibly honest with myself and when we were winning a lot my perspective was that I am fortunate to live that and now I am not depressed that everything is going bad.

“It looks like what we have done in the past is easy, but I know with Jurgen Klopp, the Liverpool that we beat, or Arsenal in the last seasons, how strong they are, but now we are not as strong as we were, that is the reality, for many, many, many circumstances.

“I want the team back, and the players back. It is important because now the training sessions are better and four or five players are coming back.”

Liverpool have been told that one of their star players ‘is gone’ ahead of their clash against Manchester City.

On Sunday afternoon, all the attention will be on Anfield as Premier League leaders Liverpool take on reigning champions City.

Pep Guardiola’s men are currently in the middle of a horrible run of form, having not tasted victory in their last six matches.

In contrast, Liverpool have only been beaten once this season and is currently top of the Premier League and the UEFA Champions League.

However, despite their positive start to the 24/25 season, concerns remain over the future of some of their star players.

Star trio Virgil van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah will walk away for free at the end of the campaign if they fail to agree a new contract with the club.

Speaking ahead of Liverpool vs City, former Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp believes Salah is ‘as good as gone’.

He told The Sun: “Even at 32, if you gave him a three-year contract next summer, he isn’t going to suddenly fall off a cliff with his fitness or his play.

“But if I were in Arne Slot’s place, as his manager at Anfield, I’d be thinking that Salah is gone after this season, no matter what cryptic messages he puts out to muddy the waters over his future. If he hasn’t signed by now, then to me Salah is gone, despite those comments about the club not coming up with a new offer like he did.

“Last summer Liverpool could have got more than that but the move to Saudi’s Pro League didn’t come off — that surprised me. Now of course, in the age of the Bosman free transfer, a lot of what Liverpool would have collected will go Salah’s way.”

Redknapp added: “He has a choice. If he is purely football driven, stay at Anfield. But even for someone like him, if clubs are dangling crazy figures in front of you, it becomes difficult to turn down.

“He could have gone last year but was probably thinking that most of the £100m or even £200m Liverpool would have got for him, will be going his way in 12 months’ time, so he is sitting it out.

“In some ways if he wins the Premier League title again with Liverpool this season, it seems like a fitting way to go out. You have to be honest and think to yourself that this uncertainty has been dragging on for so long now that it makes things even more certain. That he is leaving.”

Man City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega has come out with a bizarre statement after losing to Liverpool in the Premier League. Pep Guardiola’s side is struggling for form.

After losing 2-0 at Anfield and conceding a penalty which was converted by Mohamed Salah, Manchester City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega has bizarrely hit out at the city of Liverpool.

According to the ECHO, the Spaniard, who was surprisingly selected ahead of the usual shot-stopper Ederson, used a radio interview post-match to aim a dig at Merseyside. He did so when asked about Pep Guardiola not being particularly pleased with the crowd telling him he would be “sacked in the morning”.

“Someone told me before that this area (Liverpool) is probably not the best part in the UK,” Ortega supposedly said. “I think he reacted really well, yeah.”

Guardiola put six fingers in the air to denote the number of titles that he has won while in England, often competing against Liverpool. That was in response to the Anfield crowd’s taunts during the game and he did it at the final whistle too.

“All the stadiums want to sack me!” Guardiola said. “It started at Brighton. Maybe they are right with the results we’ve been having but I didn’t expect that at Anfield.

“They didn’t do it at 1-0, but at 2-0. Maybe they should have sung it in the past. I didn’t expect it from the people from Liverpool but it’s fine, it’s part of the game, and I understand completely. We’ve had incredible battles together. I have a respect for them.”

Liverpool.com says: Ortega’s comments were a frankly bizarre thing for a professional soccer player to say. The chants were clearly tongue in cheek and as Ortega will surely know, Liverpool supporters are far from the only ones who have said such things.

Guardiola took it relatively well and having lost six out of seven games — squandering a 3-0 lead to draw 3-3 in the other one — it isn’t that far of firing form. For Guardiola, it is obviously different because of what he already achieved, but perhaps Ortega should focus on helping his team improve rather than aiming unnecessary sly digs.

Mo Salah seemingly aimed a dig at Jamie Carragher following Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Man City at Anfield on Sunday.

Salah, 32, provided an assist for Cody Gakpo’s opening goal before firing home a penalty 12 minutes from time to put the Reds 11 points clear of Man City – now fifth – and nine clear of second-place Arsenal.

The Liverpool star admitted he was “more out than in” when speaking to reporters after Liverpool’s 3-2 win against Southampton last Sunday.

“I must say, I am very disappointed with Mo Salah,” Carragher said on Sky Sports’ MNF.

“[With] that interview yesterday…Liverpool have got Real Madrid midweek and Manchester City at the weekend – that’s the story for Liverpool right now.

“And Mo Salah, we’re all quite aware…that in the seven years he has been at the football club, he’s stopped in the mixed zone twice, which is his right, which is absolutely fine.

“But he decided to stop for the third time away at Southampton on the back of winning Liverpool the game.”

“The most important thing is Liverpool winning the Premier League,” he added.

“That is more important than any of those players, and if he continues to put comments out, or his agent keeps putting tweets out, that’s selfish.”

But he did admit he was “desperate” for the player and club to “meet in the middle” regarding a contract.

Following Liverpool’s victory against City, Salah and Van Dijk were interviewed by Sky Sports.

When the Player of the Match award was being handed out by Van Dijk to Salah, the Dutchman said: “I’m surprised that Carra didn’t give it to you.”

Salah replied: “He wouldn’t…never, he [Jamie Carragher] wouldn’t give it to me.”

When pressed on his contract situation, the Egyptian admitted that the match could have been the last time he faced Manchester City at Anfield as his current deal is set to expire in the summer of 2025.

“Honestly it’s in my head [it being his last time facing Man City at Anfield],” Salah said earlier in his post-match interview.

“Until now this is the last City game I will play for Liverpool so I was just going to enjoy it. The atmosphere was incredible so I will enjoy every second here. Hopefully we just win the league and will see what will happen.”

Speaking in the Sky Sports studio following the game, Carragher doubled down on his previous take.

“I have no problem with Salah and Van Dijk,” he said.

“They are two of the greatest for Liverpool. Liverpool are a club run by data. I’m not saying he shouldn’t get a two-year deal or give him big money.

“He’s on big money now. The club is not built on giving them what they want. That’s where the success of the club has come from. They are ahead of the game”

Manchester City suffered a sixth defeat in seven games as they lost 2-0 to Liverpool at Anfield and Pep Guardiola wasn’t impressed with a chant aimed at him.

Pep Guardiola admitted he was surprised to be on the end of taunts from Liverpool fans about his job security after his Manchester City slumped to another defeat at Anfield.

Guardiola is on the worst run of his managerial career and the Blues are now winless in seven, with six of them defeats after this 2-0 reverse to Liverpool, who are 11 points clear of City in the Premier League table.

After Mohamed Salah’s penalty put the game beyond doubt the home fans turned their attention to Guardiola with a rousing rendition of ‘you’re getting sacked in the morning’. The 53-year-old smiled at the taunt before turning to the supporters behind him and raising six fingers, a reminder of the number of Premier League titles he has won, many of them in epic battles with Liverpool.

Guardiola repeated that gesture in front of the City fans at full-time but was again hit with a rendition of ‘sacked in the morning’ by the home fans as he left the pitch. This time he applauded the Liverpool supporters and got a generous hand in return, but after the game he said he was shocked by the song.

Asked if this season’s troubles show how hard it was to win six title in a row, Guardiola said: “Don’t try to be nice to me. The perspective and the business is how to react today, not what happened. I’m so proud of my six Premier Leagues against that team and the previous team. I didn’t expect Anfield to start to chant at 0-2 that I would be sacked. Maybe I deserved to be sacked. With our results, maybe I’m still in the job because I won six Premier Leagues and a lot of titles.

“But I didn’t expect to sing at 0-2 – maybe at 0-1 when it was tighter or maybe last season or the previous season. At Anfield I didn’t expect it but it’s fine. It’s part of the game. When you win, you laugh, When you lose, you laugh.

“There have been incredible battles. The time with Jurgen Klopp was unforgettable for me and the battles with Liverpool have been forever. Even winning the Premier Leagues with little margin their teams were amazing but fortunately we were so resilient and strong mentally at our best it helped us to do something magnificent.

“Now this season it will be so difficult to repeat but I’m pretty sure all of us will reflect and try to come on strong with our fans at the Etihad against Nottingham Forest.”

Guardiola revealed the poor run of form was affecting him, but he is able to put it into perspective after the success he has enjoyed at the club.

“I lived better before than now. Even the taste of the wine was better,” he said. “But I am incredibly honest with myself and when we were winning a lot my perspective was that I am fortunate to live that and now I am not depressed that everything is going bad.

“I am incredibly honest with myself and when I think I cannot do it we will talk with the club but I feel that I want to do it and life is not in all departments perfect. You know at the start of the season when everyone says ‘City will win the league and the rest have to fight for the Champions League,’ I said, ‘Oh my God’.

“It looks like what we have done in the past is easy, but I know with Jurgen Klopp and the Liverpool that we beat, or Arsenal in the last seasons, how strong they are, but now we are not as strong as we were. That is the reality, for many, many, many circumstances.

“Not just Rodri, of course Rodri is vital for us, but not just him. For many reasons and the best way to go through that, for myself as well, is to go through the reality, to find the decisions to have to make to find the solutions to try to win games with these players.

“When I was in trouble my mum and dad never gave me away, always they were there, and now I have the feeling in the club. I want to be with these players. We didn’t think we can lose one game, two games. Losing six or seven is wow, it is a lot, but it is what it is, accept it.”

Manchester City fans have turned on one player on social media after a difficult first half against Liverpool.

Manchester City fans have turned on one player on social media after a difficult first half against Liverpool.

Liverpool went into their encounter with City, hoping to go 11 points clear of Pep Guardiola’s men. Indeed, Arne Slot had started life as Reds boss with 17 wins from 19 games.

Meanwhile, City have been in dismal form. They started the game in fourth, having lost five in a row before squandering a 3-0 lead to draw with Feyenoord in the Champions League earlier this week.

City’s woes have been blamed on several things – Erling Haaland’s form has been more erratic in front of goal while Ballon d’Or winning midfielder Rodri has been injured for much of the campaign.

However, City fans have also claimed the Kyle Walker powers are finally waning.

After going into half time 1-0 down against Liverpool, several City fans were critical of the 34-year-old England international on X.

One person said: “Kyle Walker’s awareness of what is around him gets worse, and worse, and worse with every passing week.”

Another added: “Kyle Walker is literally a pain to watch…how does he continuously start game and why is he still the captain…come on man sell this guy.”

A third said: “Kyle Walker once again, losing Gakpo at the back post. Beggars belief how he’s not been dropped.”

A fourth wrote: “The brains of people who still rate Kyle Walker need to be studied in labs like chimps.”

A fifth said: “Kyle Walker got to be one of the worst players in the Premier League. Absolutely abysmal.”