10 Things We Know After Manchester Cit 3-0 Liverpool

Carlos Tevez gets the slightest of touches on Micah Richard's header to score his first and City's second on a night where they completely outplayed Liverpool. But they shouldn't be too confident, and the Reds shouldn't be too downtrodden just yet.

Roberto Mancini has some selection problems

City have spent more money than all the other Premier League clubs combined this summer and the bench Monday night showed that. New boy Mario Balotelli and David Silva were both out, but lesser names players like Adam Johnson really shone on the pitch. James Milner had an impressive debut as well so the question for Mancini will be how he will select his team each week while still keeping his many big name players happy with it.

Joe Hart is England's hope for the future

England doesn't have much to gloat about right now but Joe Hart certainly is something. City would've lost by at least three goals last weekend if not for Hart, and he kept Liverpool out on two important occasions on Monday leaving Shay Given on the bench pondering a call from Arsene Wenger. At just 23 years old, he's playing like a keeper with years of big-game experience and is looking invaluable at the moment. At the moment.

City aren't title contenders just yet

City have arguably the deepest, most star-studded line-up in the Premier League, but they aren't a threat to Chelsea and Manchester United just yet. City had a good record against the big teams last year, but they tripped up against the so-called lesser teams whereas teams like United and Chelsea have the maturity to match their depth. City need to jell quickly, and Mancini needs to make sure everyone stays happy to give them a chance at the title. If things start to get bad, this group of players doesn't seem too good to implode at any minute.

Shay Given might finally be going to Arsenal

Mark Schwarzer sat out of Fulham's draw with United on Sunday while Shay Given was twiddling his thumbs on City's bench watching Joe Hart cement his spot. Arsene Wenger is not hiding his desire for a new goal keeper and Given surely won't want to warm the bench all year. But is Mancini confident enough in his young keeper to let his experienced back-up leave? And leave for Arsenal no doubt, a team that will surely be a rival to City at some point this season.

City was a completely different team at home than away last week.

City were dominant in every sense against Liverpool on Monday. But against Tottenham last week, City was lucky to get out of White Hart Lane alive. The Blues had wavering form last season as well and to be a title contender, you have to be solid. City can't depend on playing well at home and just getting by on the road and still hope to challenge for the title.

The old Fernando Torres needs to come back

Fernando Torres has been out of sync since his latest knee surgery in April, and Liverpool can't afford to have him misfiring the way Spain could at the World Cup. He got 80 good minutes under his belt Monday night, but he was slow on the ball and was still lacking pace. Liverpool don't have a true, experienced striker to back him up, so his goals will be vital to the Reds this season.

The Reds needs more creativity

The Reds main downfall Monday night against City was that they lacked creativity once they got the ball in the final third of the pitch. Joe Cole was brought in to rectify that situation and perhaps it was his absence that hurt Liverpool because crosses were at a premium all night and Liverpool had trouble getting through City's defense. New boy Milan Jovanovic sure does work hard for the team, but he needs to improve his final pass, and most importantly, more Liverpool players need to get into the box and attack these balls when they come in.

Liverpool's hopes of the top four aren't dead and buried yet

Liverpool's hopes took a beating Monday night, and the optimism Roy Hodgson brought with him has faded but not completely. It's too early in the season to call anyone besides Chelsea and United title contenders, and we saw last season that just about any team can challenge for spots three and four. A shaky start and some early blows for the second consecutive season might jolt the Reds and make them even more eager to avenge for last season's disappointment.

Mascherano might be leaving after all

Javier Mascherano was left out the squad against City, and rumors were flying that he told Hodgson he didn't want to play; he just wanted to leave. Everyone knows he wants to leave, but Hodgson seemed to be holding firm in his stance that he wouldn't be leaving on the cheap. But if Mascherano starts with the attitude, he might not have a choice. Barcelona players love him, so Hodgson probably wouldn't have trouble getting them to pay a good enough price, but he better do it quick before Masch's attitude brings everyone further down.

Liverpool needs to figure out how to keep up the team mentality

Last season, Liverpool played some games as 11 uninterested individuals and some as one strong, formidable unit. On Monday it was more of the former. Steven Gerrard stood out and urged the team on when they were down by two goals, but he was mostly on his own. Maybe the team still needs to settle in with the new guys, but after the way they rallied against Arsenal with 10 men, most fans would have to be disappointed in the showing the Reds put on at City. In the 2008-2009 season, the Reds had a number of come-from-behind wins, including on the road against both Manchester teams, but the Reds lost that mentality amidst everything last season, and Hodgson has to find a way to get it back if the Reds have any hopes of achieving anything this season.