ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE
Fulham 0
Man City 2
LONDON • This felt like a little more than a box-ticking exercise for a team with Manchester City's ambitions.
There was never any jeopardy, no sense that they were ever in any danger against opponents with all the nous and snarl of a sleeping kitten, and City did not have to do much more than tickle Fulham's tummy to return to the Premier League's summit yesterday.
It was over as a contest long before the end - first-half goals from Bernardo Silva and Sergio Aguero enough to seal a 2-0 win and three points for Pep Guardiola's side, who will be hoping for a slip-up by Liverpool when they host Tottenham today.
The pressure is back on Jurgen Klopp's men, who will start with 76 points - a point below the leaders when they face Spurs.
City manager Guardiola, though, is not focusing too much on their rivals and looking only to carry on the momentum in hopes of winning every game left in the season.
"After the international break, you usually miss a bit with your rhythm, but the effort was there," the Spaniard told BBC Sport.
"The first 15 to 20 minutes was incredible with the way we played. We played with incredible spirit, we could have scored more. After the goals, we controlled it.
"We are going to do everything to win. No matter the next competition, we will win the game. We don't think too much about what people say about the quadruple.
"What Liverpool and Man City have done in the Premier League, both deserve the credit. That's why we are here.
"Enjoy the moment and dream to win another game."
The task of puncturing the worst defence in the league proved predictably straightforward for City.
They got down to business straight away, setting up camp in Fulham's half from first whistle to last, and were so dominant that it almost felt as though they had wasted time by waiting until the fifth minute to break the deadlock.
Fulham, cautious and timid in their 5-4-1 system, had intended to frustrate City's illustrious attack by sitting deep and waiting for opportunities on the break.
The problem with that ploy, however, is that Scott Parker's players were riddled with anxiety even on the rare occasions when they had possession.
Unable to cope with City's high press, they were punished for trying to play out from the back when Timothy Fosu-Mensah's errant pass went to Kevin de Bruyne instead of Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa.
Bad idea. The ball was nestling in the back of Fulham's net in a matter of seconds.
De Bruyne, starting for the first time since March 2 after shaking off a hamstring problem, quickly found Aguero, who looked right and saw Bernardo Silva.
The Portuguese midfielder cut inside, ignored a couple of limp challenges and fizzed a crisp drive inside the right post from 20 yards, confirming the suspicion that Fulham were horribly out of their depth against opponents of this calibre.
0
Fulham failed to get a single shot on target for the first time in their last 188 home league matches, since April 2010 against Wolves.
ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE
YESTERDAY
Man United 2 Watford 1
Burnley 2 Wolves 0
Leicester 2 Bournemouth 0
Palace 2 Huddersfield 0
Brighton 0 Southampton 1
West Ham v Everton Late kick-off
TODAY
Cardiff v Chelsea Singtel TV Ch102 & StarHub Ch227, 9.05pm
Liverpool v Tottenham Ch102 & Ch227, 11.30pm
TOMORROW
Arsenal v Newcastle Ch102 & Ch227, Tuesday, 3am
It barely resembled a contest as City rained attempts on Sergio Rico's goal for the rest of the half.
David Silva was at his creative best in midfield, de Bruyne looked free of rust and Raheem Sterling, brimming with confidence on the left flank, relished running at the nervous Cyrus Christie.
Second-bottom Fulham, bereft of belief, could not get close to them.
They were once again punished for their sloppiness in the 27th minute when Joe Bryan's miscued pass gave Bernardo Silva the chance to free Aguero, who swept past the ineffective Maxime Le Marchand before lifting a lovely shot over the advancing Rico.
"We started the game very well, pressing high, creating chances," Bernardo Silva told Sky Sports.
"The second half we tried to control the ball. We're very happy with three points and it's on to the next one. If we win the seven games left, we will be champions."
Meanwhile, Huddersfield were relegated yesterday after losing 2-0 to Crystal Palace. With Southampton and Burnley both picking up wins, Huddersfield become the first Premier League team since Derby in 2007-2008 to be relegated in March.
THE GUARDIAN
Champions League final: Mauricio Pochettino 'calm' as he refuses to commit future to Tottenham. Spurs fell to a 2-0 loss in Madrid despite playing on the front foot for much of the game, as
Spurs hope to be in new stadium 'before Christmas', says
Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund have insisted Chelsea-target Christian Pulisic will not be allowed to leave in the January transfer window. According to British media reports, Chelsea are interested in the 20-year-old US international, but Dortmund, who want 50 million euros ($56.8m) for the
Dortmund insist Premier League target Pulisic not for sale in
Italian World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro was named coach of China on Friday, spearheading the ambitious country's attempts to become a footballing force at last. It was not immediately clear if the former Juventus and Real Madrid star will lead the team on a temporary or permanent basis -- Chinese media speculated that the upcoming
Italian legend Cannavaro named new coach of China
Everton avoided a third consecutive Premier League home defeat as Kurt Zouma's header and a late goal by Dominic Calvert-Lewin earned them a flattering 2-0 victory against Bournemouth at a rainy Goodison Park on Sunday.
Soccer: Everton ride luck for 2-0 home victory over Bournemouth
Eden Hazard marks milestone with early goal to help Belgium win Michy Batshuayi got the other goal for the top team in the FIFA rankings, who began their campaign last Thursday with a 3-1 home
Hazard marks milestone with early goal to help Belgium win
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp believes all the Premier League's title hopefuls have problems to overcome, apart from leaders Manchester City. The Reds ended a run of three league matches without a
Liverpool is ready to fight Man City for the title, Klopp Insists
FC Barcelona were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw at Olympique Lyonnais in their UEFA Champions League last 16 first leg tie on Tuesday. The result ensured both sides remained unbeaten in this season's competition.
Champions League: Toothless Barcelona held to goalless draw
Football: Kean scores for Juventus despite racial abuse but Bonucci says forward partly to blame for inciting crowd Football News & Top Stories. Source by THEOFFICALZUKUS used under Creative Commons license.
Moise Kean: Raheem Sterling says Leonardo Bonucci racism
sportypoint.com/moise-kean-raheem-sterling-says-leonardo-bonucci-racism-comments-laughable/
Leonardo Bonucci's suggestion that Juventus team-mate Moise Kean was partly to blame for the racist abuse he received from Cagliari fans is laughable, says Manchester City winger Raheem Sterling. Kean, 19, spread his arms while facing the crowd after scoring Juve's second goal in Tuesday's Serie A win.
Kean subject to racist abuse, Juve teammate Bonucci says he
Feb 27 - MANCHESTER CITY 1 WEST HAM UNITED 0 . Sergio Aguero's penalty gave champions Manchester City a 1-0 win over West Ham United at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday to stay a point behind Premier League leaders Liverpool.
Aguero penalty gives Man City 1-0 win over West Ham
With Harry Kane and Dele Alli sidelined until March, everyone was ready to write off Tottenham Hotspur's season as predictions of a slide down the table arrived. Without their star players, the story went, Mauricio Pochettino's men would crumble and be dragged back into the dogfight that is the battle for fourth.
Guardiola isn't thinking that far ahead just yet and he urged his players to take it one game at a time. "Liverpool and Man City have done incredible so far so deserve the credit. We will have 80 points with six games to play if we win next week," he said. "We are going to do everything to win.
Guardiola salutes 'incredible' Manchester City
desdelabanda.com/2019/04/02/guardiola-salutes-incredible-manchester-city/
You can't have Salah, Bobby Firmino and Sadio Mane scoring a hat-trick each every weekend, but that just isn't how football works. Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has confirmed that Sergio Aguero suffered a knock during his side's 2-0 win over Fulham at Craven Cottage on Saturday.
100 points: Guardiola salutes incredible Man City - Starr Sports
starrsportsgh.com/2018/05/100-points-guardiola-salutes-incredible-man-city/
Pep Guardiola saluted his "incredible" Manchester City as the champions became the first Premier League side to reach 100 points thanks to a 1-0 win at Southampton on Sunday. Guardiola's team have been focused on rewriting
Eintracht Frankfurt 1-1 Chelsea: Pedro grabs away goal in
Qatar's Abdulaziz Hatem scored with a stunning late strike as the 2022 World Cup hosts upset Son Heung Min's South Korea 1-0 on Friday to reach the semi-finals of the Asian Cup for the first time.
Hatem seals Qatar cup upset over Sth Korea - Nine Wide World
A FIFA feasibility study has concluded that the 2022 World Cup can expand to 48 teams by using at least one of Qatar's neighbors as an additional host, and says there is a low legal risk to
FIFA backs 48-team World Cup in 2022 | Sports - Geo.tv
The Reds projected lineup for 2019. (Yahoo Sports) Who will be the Reds' fantasy breakout? Cincinnati's outfield is awfully cluttered following the team's offseason deal with the Dodgers, a
Cincinnati Reds to add minor-league team in Appalachian League
0 comments:
Post a Comment