Manchester City vs Liverpool: Five things we learned as Jürgen Klopp’s side claim friendly win in New Jersey

Mohamed Salah still needs to “get used to” his new arrangement of shoulder ligaments according to Jurgen Klopp, who suggested before this game that the Egyptian was still feeling the effects of tangling with Sergio Ramos two months ago.

Salah, though, showed little sign of any side-effects in his second-half cameo. A Liverpool team that struggled for fluidity improved immediately after his arrival and suddenly started clicking again in attack. Sadio Mané was the main beneficiary, and the pair’s late link-up play was promising.

Salah’s goal should not have been allowed. His trailing leg was offside at the point of Rafael Camacho’s cross. He also suffered the indignity of being nutmegged by a Joe Hart backheel. That aside, though, this was a welcome return in red and a reminder of the game-changing impact he can have.

Bernardo Silva, so often cast as Manchester City’s twelfth man and first of the substitutes’ bench last season, ended his summer holiday early in order to join up with the squad in the United States, and this was a good first day back at work.

Leroy Sané opened the scoring in the early part of the second half and Bernardo provided the assist, threading a through ball down Virgil van Dijk’s weaker side and weighting it perfectly for his team-mate.

The Portugal international regularly showed such moments of invention during his debut year at Etihad, but they were never enough to nail down a starting berth. His assist here, coupled with his early return, may give Guardiola some food for thought.

Pep Guardiola’s decision to deploy a back three had more to do with Manchester City’s long list of absentees than any sort of tactical experimentation, but it led to a handful of interesting selections - most noticeably in midfield.

Riyad Mahrez operated centrally rather than on the right, and impressed in flashes, but Oleksandr Zinchenko’s debut in a holding role caught the eye most of all. The Ukrainian, linked with Wolverhampton Wanderers of late, held his own against a relatively strong Liverpool midfield.

Would he and part-time left-back Fabian Delph provide adequate cover for Fernandinho and Ilkay Gundogan and be able to deputise in Guardiola’s more reserved midfield roles? Perhaps, or perhaps not. On this display though, Zinchenko deserves at least another audition.

The talent of Curtis Jones, a ‘Toxteth Terror’ for the twenty-first century, is known to everyone at Melwood. The 17-year-old is the local boy most likely to emulate Trent Alexander-Arnold’s rise to the first team. A “proper Scouser”, as Jurgen Klopp described him earlier this week.

Jones will not be Merseyside’s best-kept secret after this pre-season has elapsed, though. A string of bright performances have announced him to the world as Liverpool’s most promising new youth prospect.

The teenager was his side’s best player in a first half short on highlights and, given how keen he was to take up good scoring positions, Jones could well have opened his account on another night.

A few hours before kick-off, once the first videos of high, lofted balls dropping dead on the MetLife Stadium’s unresponsive turf began to circulate on social media, it was clear that there would be little to learn from this friendly.

Two Premier League title contenders badly in need of match preparation were both hampered by a poor, patchy pitch that played host to three days of Taylor Swift concerts last weekend.

Guardiola has run into similar problems before, of course. A friendly against Manchester United in 2016 was called off as the surface at the Beijing Bird’s Nest was too dangerous underfoot.

The International Champions Cup and other foreign tours are a staple of every elite club’s pre-season now and here to stay because they guarantee huge profits, but when will these competitions also guarantee solid, reliable preparation?