Guehi Downplays Liverpool Record As He Secures Fifth Win Against Reds This Season

Marc Guehi extended a unique run against Liverpool as Manchester City’s 4-0 FA Cup quarter-final win gave the defender a fifth victory over the same opponents this season, yet the centre-back downplayed the personal milestone and highlighted the collective effort that carried City through difficult spells at the Etihad Stadium.

The result also moved Manchester City into the FA Cup record books, as Pep Guardiola’s team registered an 18th straight home win in the competition, overtaking Clapham Rovers’ sequence of 17 home victories between December 1873 and February 1881, with City surviving an early Liverpool surge and a missed penalty from Mohamed Salah.

Guehi’s success against Liverpool has been a theme of the 2025-26 campaign, with three wins while at Crystal Palace and two more for Manchester City, making the defender the only player in Europe’s top five leagues to defeat the same club five times this season, including a shoot-out success in the Community Shield.

Those victories came in different competitions and for two teams, showing how often Guehi faced Liverpool across the calendar. Palace beat Liverpool once on penalties in the Community Shield, once in the Premier League and once in the EFL Cup, while City secured league and FA Cup wins, including a 4-0 scoreline in February’s Premier League meeting.

The wider Manchester City squad has also enjoyed repeated success against strong opposition this season, with five City players recording four wins against Newcastle United in 2025-26, yet no other player across Europe’s major leagues matches Guehi’s five wins over one opponent in a single season.

Asked by TNT Sports about this record after the FA Cup tie, Guehi laughed off the individual focus and instead spoke about the demands of elite football and the need to embrace every challenge while competing for honours at club level.

"It's not me! It's just a coincidence! There's been a lot of ups and downs, a lot of crazy moments, but you have to enjoy it, because it's not a long career. It's relentless, it's exciting, it's everything I wanted, to be able to play at this level and challenge for trophies. I've been able to learn a lot, to be able to make mistakes, then come out and learn again, I've been given an opportunity to do that here."

Guehi’s frequent meetings with Liverpool this season follow a failed transfer to Anfield, as a deadline-day move last September collapsed before completion, leading the defender to stay at Crystal Palace until a January switch to Manchester City reshaped the defender’s career path.

After joining Guardiola’s squad mid-season, Guehi adapted quickly to Manchester City’s defensive structure and intensity, yet the centre-back missed one landmark occasion, as suspension ruled Guehi out of last month’s EFL Cup final, when City defeated Arsenal 2-0 at Wembley Stadium.

Marc Guehi views on Manchester City, Pep Guardiola and Liverpool test

The defender has still enjoyed a productive start under Guardiola and now targets further trophies before the end of the campaign, having already contributed to deep runs in domestic competitions and a strong Premier League push, with Manchester City balancing several fronts.

"He's exactly how you see him, how he comes across on TV and in interviews," Guehi said of Guardiola. "He just loves football, he loves his players, he just wants to win."

The FA Cup quarter-final win over Liverpool underlined that mentality, with Manchester City overcoming pressure in the opening stages and posting a higher expected-goals figure than Liverpool, 2.5 to 1.43, despite Salah missing a second-half penalty that could have changed the flow of the contest.

Although Liverpool created chances and controlled periods of possession, City limited clear openings during key passages and then exploited spaces on transition, turning the tie decisively in the second half as the hosts capitalised on their attacking depth and managed the game professionally after building a clear lead.

"It's difficult when you play against such a good team, with so many good players, sometimes you have to ride that wave," Guehi told City's website. "I think, luckily, we all suffered well as a team. We dealt with those big moments. It was great that we came out the other side of it. I'm super proud of everyone."

Guehi’s campaign therefore features an unusual mix of storylines, from a collapsed Liverpool move to repeated victories over the same opponents and integration into Manchester City’s trophy hunt, with the defender stressing learning, collective resilience and Guardiola’s influence as City chase further silverware across the closing months of 2025-26.