Tag: Man City

Erling Haaland scored a dramatic 93rd-minute penalty as Manchester City pulled off a stunning comeback against Liverpool to keep the Premier League title race alive.

A battling win for Pep Guardiola’s second-placed side cut Arsenal’s lead at the top to six points, with 13 games remaining.

Bernardo Silva’s 84th-minute equaliser had initially cancelled out Dominik Szoboszlai’s superb free-kick 10 minutes earlier.

Then in added time, Matheus Nunes was bundled over inside the box by Liverpool keeper Alisson and referee Craig Pawson pointed to the spot.

Haaland made no mistake, as he scored his 21st Premier League of the season to send the visiting fans wild.

City keeper Gianluigi Donnarumma then made a brilliant save to deny Alexis Mac Allister – a minute before City had the ball in the net again through Rayan Cherki’s finish from inside his own half, with Alisson out of his goal after supporting his side’s attack.

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But the effort was ruled out after a video assistant referee (VAR) check, with Szoboszlai instead sent off for fouling Haaland before the ball rolled in, and a free-kick awarded to City instead.

Either way, it didn’t matter as City won at Anfield for the first time since 2021, but in front of fans for a first time since 2003.

City dominated possession in the first half but failed to make it count by taking their chances, with Alisson making a good block to deny Haaland in the first minute and again later in the half.

Their front three of Haaland, Antoine Semenyo and Omar Marmoush constantly asked Liverpool’s defence questions but lacked that ruthlessness in front of goal.

It took 25 minutes for Arne Slot’s side to have an attempt on goal themselves, but they were much better after the break, with Hugo Ekitike twice coming close to the opener.

First, his right-footed strike went narrowly wide with Donnarumma beaten, and minutes later, Salah found Ekitike with a superb sliced cross but the Frenchman’s header drifted agonisingly wide.

With a draw no good for City, the game opened up and Ruben Dias came close with a shot, before Florian Wirtz was denied by a terrific block from Marc Guehi at the other end.

Somehow the game remained goalless until the 74th minute when Szoboszlai stepped up to score his ninth goal of the campaign with an absolute belter from a set-piece – in the same manner that he did against Arsenal here in August.

But unlike that day when Liverpool held on for victory, City showed tremendous resilience to complete a memorable comeback.

With speculation about his future, it remains to be seen if Guardiola has managed his last game for City at Anfield.

But if he has, he will end with a rare win. This was his 11th visit and his only previous win (D4 L6) came here in 2021, when the game was played without fans due to the pandemic.

This was also only City’s third league win at Liverpool in 23 meetings as they completed a notable first league double over their rivals since the 1936-37 campaign.

BBC

Pep Guardiola claimed Manchester City had made a “big statement” in the Premier League title race with their 3-0 win against Crystal Palace.

Guardiola’s side struggled to impose themselves for long spells at Selhurst Park but Erling Haaland’s header late in the first half finally broke the deadlock.

After riding their luck thanks to several missed Palace chances before and after Haaland’s opener, City showed a ruthless streak to kill off the Eagles.

Phil Foden drilled home from the edge of the area before Haaland added a late third from the penalty spot.

Second-placed City have now won four in a row in the league and sit just two points behind leaders Arsenal as the title race heats up.

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Guardiola was especially impressed with the way City dug deep to subdue tenacious Palace just days after their draining 2-1 win at Real Madrid in the Champions League.

 “Always when you approach the game, whoever the opponent, on your terms, good things are going to happen. There’s no sense to playing football without being who you are as an individual,” Guardiola said.

 “Still we are not at the top, but we are learning. We will be closer in the future. After playing in the Bernabeu, then we prepared to play the FA Cup winners.”

It was a sweet victory for Guardiola after he was out-witted by Palace boss Oliver Glasner in last season’s shock FA Cup final defeat at Wembley.

Palace have been a thorn in the side of champions Liverpool, beating them three times this season, and Guardiola acknowledged the threat posed by the south Londoners.

 “It’s behind a lot of work. Palace are so strong. Every time we play them it’s so difficult,” he said.

Guardiola conceded City are still a work in progress following his expensive overhaul of the squad since last season.

But he took heart from their willingness to fight for the win over Palace – a vital characteristic they lacked throughout last season.

 “Many things we have to improve. Madrid gave me a lot of things, that still we are not ready, not in mentality but in how to approach certain games. They are young some of the players. But 3-0 here is a big statement for us,” he said.

 “When you win in the past, you believe the past was perfect, always brilliant, always the red carpet. When we won with 100 points, all the things we achieved, we had a lot of games like today. The resilience was part of that.

 “There are moments that you struggle. Madrid was not the perfect game, but it was a step. We fought unbelievably to achieve that.

 “We are in a better position than last season. We are close in the competitions we are in,” Guardiola added.

Manchester City recovered from a goal down to collect a magnificent Champions League victory at perennial winners Real Madrid and leave the La Liga side’s manager Xabi Alonso precariously holding on to his job.

Alonso is under severe pressure following a poor run in the league and a reported clash of culture with his players and the heat will now crank up after failing to hold on to their early advantage.

The hosts suffered a blow as leading goalscorer Kylian Mbappe was deemed only fit enough to be on the bench, but the France captain did not make an appearance as his team-mates fell to a demoralising defeat.

City almost suffered a nightmare start when Matheus Nunes tripped Vinicius Jr inside the first two minutes and the referee pointed to the spot, but then awarded a free-kick on the edge of the box after consultation with the video assistant referee (VAR).

Federico Valverde almost converted the resulting effort, but his drilled shot deflected narrowly wide, while the sprightly Vinicius dinked wide at the far post shortly after.

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It seemed like City had weathered the early storm and were controlling the possession before being hit on the break as Rodrygo collected Jude Bellingham’s cross-field pass and rifled in his first goal since January.

City, though, were behind for just seven minutes as the visitors scored with their first clear opportunity of the contest – academy left-back Nico O’Reilly poking home from close range after Josko Gvardiol’s header was scooped back into the danger zone by Thibaut Courtois.

The English side turned the game around on the stroke of half-time courtesy of Haaland’s penalty after the striker was bundled over in the box by Antonio Rudiger – they could have extended their advantage further but Courtois made a stunning save to deny the Norwegian.

Real attempted to draw level in the second half with Bellingham chipping over and substitute Endrick flicking a header which clipped the crossbar, but City held on to a tremendous victory.

BBC SPORTS

Super Eagles’ duo of Samuel Chukwueze and Alex Iwobi delivered a dazzling attacking show, while compatriot Calvin Bassey stood tall in defence, as Fulham pushed Manchester City to the brink in a breathtaking 5–4 contest at Craven Cottage on Tuesday night.

Manchester City may have left with all three points, but the night belonged largely to Nigeria’s attacking duo, who spearheaded Fulham’s spirited fightback after the Premier League champions raced into a commanding lead.

City entered the game with Erling Haaland chasing history, and the Norwegian ended his goal drought in the 17^th minute, converting Jeremy Doku’s cross to reach his 100^th  Premier League goal faster than any player in history.

Before then, he had already rattled the post early in the game, signalling the danger to come.

Fulham, who started brightly in spells, were kept in the tie early on by excellent defending from Calvin Bassey. The Nigerian centre-back repeatedly snuffed out City attacks, made crucial interceptions, and provided leadership at the back even as pressure mounted.

City’s quality, however, broke through again. Haaland turned provider for Tijjani Reijnders in the 37th minute, before Phil Foden unleashed a long-range screamer to put Pep Guardiola’s side 3–0 up just before halftime.

Fulham refused to melt under pressure. Their best performer of the first half, Emile Smith Rowe, headed home a lifeline to make it 3–1 at the break.

Marco Silva made a bold statement at halftime by introducing Samuel Chukwueze, and the Super Eagles winger transformed Fulham’s attack instantly.

But City restored their cushion almost immediately through another composed Foden finish, and an unfortunate Berge deflection made it 5–1.

Still, Fulham continued to fight—and it was Alex Iwobi who sparked hopes of an improbable comeback. The Nigerian midfielder drilled a low long-range strike into the bottom corner in the 57th minute, cutting the deficit to 5–2 and injecting belief into the stadium.

The winger, initially quiet after his introduction, exploded to life in the 72nd minute, racing onto a loose ball to smash home Fulham’s third goal. Craven Cottage erupted—and Chukwueze wasn’t done yet.

Eight minutes later, he struck again, finishing a flowing counterattack to make it 5–4 and send the home crowd into a frenzy. The brace capped his most electrifying performance since joining Fulham, showcasing the pace, directness, and clinical finishing the Super Eagles winger is renowned for.

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Amid the chaos, Calvin Bassey delivered one of his most assured performances of the season. His recovery runs, well-timed blocks and composure under intense pressure kept Fulham competitive. Without him, the damage could have been far worse.

His late defensive interventions helped Fulham stay within touching distance as they threw bodies forward chasing an equaliser.

Fulham came inches away from a dramatic 90+ minute leveller when Josh King’s effort was cleared off the line by Josko Gvardiol.

Despite the defeat, Fulham’s Nigerian trio stole the spotlight—Chukwueze with a brilliant brace, Iwobi with a superb goal and tireless creativity, and Bassey with a commanding defensive display.

Manchester City, meanwhile, leave Craven Cottage as only the second visiting team to win there this season, closing the gap at the top of the Premier League standings.

But on a night filled with elite football, it was the Super Eagles stars who provided the magic.