Tag: Man City

Erling Haaland became the quickest player to reach 100 goals in Premier League history on a night when Manchester City ramped up pressure on leaders Arsenal by fending off Fulham’s impressive fightback.

Norway international Haaland got his landmark goal in the 17th minute of Tuesday’s game at Craven Cottage, firing in first time from Jeremy Doku’s cross.

It meant he reached the century in 111 league games, 13 fewer than it took previous record holder Alan Shearer.

The goal also ended a mini drought for Haaland, having gone three consecutive games without scoring. It was his 15th goal in 14 league games this season but was just a taste of what was to come.

Haaland got the assist for Manchester City’s second, slipping the ball through for Tijjani Reijnders to coolly lift the ball over Bernd Leno and into the back of the net.

Leeds came back from 2-0 down to level 2-2 against Pep Guardiola’s side at the weekend before Phil Foden got a late winner, and the in-form forward must have thought he had quashed thoughts of a repeat of that when he got City’s third.

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A fantastic header by Emile Smith Rowe moments later gave Fulham some hope at 3-1 down, but Foden got his fourth goal in two games soon after the break, smartly firing home at the near post from Haaland’s ball.

Doku’s shot then deflected in off Sander Berge to put City in a seemingly unassailable 5-1 lead.

But Fulham would not give in and Alex Iwobi curled in their second from 20 yards to signal a continuing threat to City, before substitute Samuel Chukwueze had the home side dreaming of an incredible comeback.

First, he drove in from a cross, before placing a neat finish into the back of the net six minutes later.

Momentum was with Fulham as home fans roared them on and City’s followers watched on nervously in the away end, and Josh King had a shot cleared off the line in the final seconds.

But City held on to secure a win that means they are just two points behind Arsenal, albeit having played a game more, with the Gunners hosting Brentford on Wednesday.

Fulham, meanwhile, are six points above the relegation zone but have played a game more than those sides below them.

BBC SPORTS

Manchester City scored a late winner after Leeds United equalized two goals on Saturday afternoon to move to second place-four points behind league leader Arsenal.

Although they started the match very well, leading 2-0 after 25 minutes thanks to goals from Phil Foden and Joško Gvardiol, Pep Guardiola’s men had a real scare in the second half.

Leeds came back to equalize in just twenty minutes, throwing Man City into doubt after their two consecutive defeats, at Newcastle last weekend and against Bayer Leverkusen this week.

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Fortunately, Foden avoided disaster and secured victory for his team in the 91st minute! A goal that meant a brace for the Englishman… and three points for the Skyblues!

Manchester City is second, four points behind Arsenal, who face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge this Sunday.

Manchester City crushed rivals Liverpool 3-0 in a high-stakes Premier League clash on Sunday, with Erling Haaland, Nico Gonzalez and Jeremy Doku scoring to seal a win that could prove pivotal in the title race.

The game was City boss Pep Guardiola’s 1,000^th  as a manager and his team marked the milestone with a statement victory that saw them climb to second in the table on 22 points after 11 games, four adrift of leaders Arsenal. Holders Liverpool tumbled to eighth on 18 points.

City were sharp from the outset and Haaland rose high over Ibrahima Konate to head home Matheus Nunes’ whipped cross in the 29^th  minute for his 99^th  league goal for the club. The goal made amends for the Norwegian missing a penalty early in the game, and Haaland karate-kicked the corner flag in celebration.

Gonzalez doubled their lead seconds before halftime — when with fans screaming “shoot!” he did — his effort from distance taking a deflection off Virgil van Dijk’s leg to leave goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili wrong-footed.

Doku put the game out of reach with his first league goal since January when Nico O’Reilly found him on the edge of the box. He shifted the ball onto his other foot and then whipped a blistering shot from just outside the box into the far corner in the 63rd minute.

“My players gave me a good present with this performance against the champions. We had to perform good and many good things happened, they all performed to the highest level,” Guardiola said.

City defender Ruben Dias said he was “very happy” for the manager.

“We live for games like this,” Dias said. “There is no higher level than this kind of level. Everyone did a great game.”

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City’s win was their first over Liverpool since April 1, 2023, ending a run of four games without a victory.

Haaland had an early penalty saved by Mamardashvili who guessed the right way, the fourth penalty City have missed in their last five against Liverpool in the Premier League. The penalty was awarded after Doku appeared to get caught by the Liverpool keeper.

Premier League top scorer Haaland bagged his 14th goal of the campaign – the second-most of any player through the first 11 games of a season, behind only Haaland himself, who had 17 in 2022-23. He also has 28 goals in 18 games for club and country.

Liverpool captain Virgil van Dijk briefly celebrated what he thought was a goal in the first half but it was ruled out for offside. On review, the VAR deemed that Andy Robertson, who ducked as the ball was going in the net, made “an obvious action directly in front of the goalkeeper,” and was therefore offside, the Premier League Match Centre said.

“In football the officials are deciding the key decisions and we have to deal with it on the pitch. There is no point discussing this from my point of view,” Van Dijk told Sky Sports. “The reality is that we lost 3-0 and that is a big blow.

“It’s about finding consistency and carrying on. Now we go to our countries (for the upcoming international break), stay fit and be ready for a big run after. We are not going to give up whatsoever. We are in November and we are ready for a long season and a big fight.”

City had six shots on target to just one for Liverpool, who had arrived at Etihad Stadium riding momentum after victories over Aston Villa and Real Madrid had ended a dreadful stretch of six losses in seven games across all competitions.

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE RESULTS:

Aston Villa 4-0  Bournemouth

Brentford 3 -1 Newcastle

Crystal Palace 0 -0  Brighton

Nottingham 3-1  Leeds

Man City 3-0 Liverpool

Pep Guardiola celebrated his 1,000th match as a manager in style as Manchester City cruised to victory against Liverpool at Etihad Stadium.

The meeting of two sides hoping to catch Premier League pace-setters Arsenal turned into a one-sided affair as City dominated to trim the Gunners’ lead to four points.

City halted Liverpool’s recent mini-revival in its tracks, with Erling Haaland almost inevitably setting them on their way as he continued his remarkable scoring form with his 28th goal for club and country this season.

Haaland had uncharacteristically wasted an earlier opportunity to give City the lead when his penalty was saved by Liverpool keeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, who had been penalised for upending Jeremy Doku.

The Norwegian striker made amends after 29 minutes with a soaring header into the right corner from Matheus Nunes’ cross, capping a magnificent passing move.

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It was Haaland’s first goal against Liverpool in a match in which Virgil van Dijk has started.

Liverpool thought they had equalised before half-time when captain Van Dijk rose to head home Mohamed Salah’s corner, but their celebrations were curtailed as the goal was ruled out for offside, Andy Robertson ducking in front of City goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma to allow the ball to go in.

City added insult to Liverpool’s injury in first-half stoppage time when Nico Gonzalez’s 20-yard shot deflected in off Van Dijk, with Mamardashvili wrong-footed.

Doku tormented the Liverpool defence, Conor Bradley in particular, and the Belgian winger produced a moment of individual brilliance to extend City’s lead soon after the hour, curling a superb right-foot curling effort beyond Mamardashvili from 20 yards.

BBC SPORT

Phil Foden scored twice and Erling Haaland netted against his former club as Manchester City brushed aside Borussia Dortmund to strengthen their position in the league phase of the Champions League.

Pep Guardiola’s men are unbeaten in their opening four matches and a third win moved them up to fourth in the table, with the top eight sides qualifying automatically for the last 16.

Nico Kovac’s Dortmund side had started on the front foot but faded away as the hosts scored twice in seven first-half minutes to wrestle control of the contest.

Foden was impressive throughout and he stung the palms of Gregor Kobel with a powerful strike from outside the box, before a curling free-kick straight into the hands of the visiting goalkeeper.

It was third time lucky for the Englishman in the 22nd minute, picking the ball up outside the box and, as the Dortmund defenders stood off, Foden rolled a delightful finish low into the bottom corner.

It was his first Champions League goal in exactly a year after netting in a 4-1 defeat by Sporting in last season’s competition.

City then attacked at will and seemed intent on steamrollering the opposition as Kobel tipped over a close-range effort from Nico O’Reilly, before the prolific Haaland thumped home a cutback from Jeremy Doku in the 29th minute.

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It was the Norwegian’s fifth successive Champions League strike – becoming the first player to do so for three different teams – RB Salzburg, Dortmund and now City.

Kobel was kept busy, batting away a thunderous drive from Tijjani Reijnders.

But City pushed on after the restart and Foden doubled his tally in the 57th minute by curling home a delightful second.

Dortmund, who are 12th in the table, staged a late rally and Waldemar Anton poked home a consolation from a Julian Ryerson cross.

But substitute Rayan Cherki restored City’s three-goal advantage in added time with a lovely run and neat finish.

BBC SPORT

Erling Haaland was back on the scoresheet with two goals to help Manchester City return to winning ways in the Premier League and leapfrog Bournemouth into second place.

Pep Guardiola’s side had suffered their first defeat in 10 games at Aston Villa last Sunday, with Haaland not finding the net for only the second time this season.

But the Norwegian’s double proved crucial against the in-form Cherries as City moved six points behind leaders Arsenal.

Bournemouth almost made the dream start when they had the ball in the net after 44 seconds through teenager Eli Junior Kroupi, but the goal was ruled out for offside.

Despite the early scare, the hosts went ahead in the 17th minute courtesy of Haaland, who latched on to Rayan Cherki’s neat header on the halfway line and there was only going to be one outcome as the striker stroked home an unerring finish.

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The visitors, though, restored parity just eight minutes later when Tyler Adams reacted quickest to crash home following Gianluigi Donnarumma’s miscued punch, although the goalkeeper felt he had been held by David Brooks at the corner and was booked for his protestations.

It was USA midfielder Adams’ first goal in English football during spells at Leeds and Bournemouth.

City, though, have a prolific marksman in Haaland and the striker linked up again with Cherki before going around Djordje Petrovic and coolly converted his 13th league goal of the campaign – and 26 in all competitions for club and country.

He was denied a first-half hat-trick when a chipped effort was clawed away by the Bournemouth goalkeeper and also headed over at the start of the second period.

Kroupi had a first-time shot batted away by Donnarumma and that miss proved crucial as Nico O’Reilly burst forward at the other end on the hour mark and drilled in a precise, finish low into the corner to seal an impressive success.

BBC SPORT

Manchester City said on Monday they have reached a settlement with the Premier League in their dispute over the league’s Associated Party Transactions rules.

City said they accepted that the current APT rules, which regulate commercial deals between clubs and companies linked to their owners if deemed over fair market value, are “valid and binding”, with both parties agreeing to terminate legal proceedings.

The case is separate from the charges City are facing over alleged breaches of financial rules.

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“This settlement brings an end to the dispute between the parties regarding the APT Rules. As part of the settlement, Manchester City accepts that the current APT Rules are valid and binding,” City said in a statement.

The current APT rules were adopted in November after the majority of the English top-flight clubs voted in favour of some amendments to the previous rules, which were also challenged by City.

An independent tribunal ruled in February that aspects of the league’s APT rules “were found to be unlawful.” In response, the Premier League said the tribunal’s ruling did not affect the “valid operation” of its current APT rules.