Without the injured Erling Haaland and trailing 1-0 to Luton at halftime, Manchester City was at risk of plunging right into a full-blown disaster approaching the midway level of its Premier League title protection.
Manchester City’s English midfielder #10 Jack Grealish (2nd R) celebrates scoring his staff second purpose throughout the English Premier League soccer match between Luton Town and Manchester City(AFP)
The defending champions managed to show it spherical, although, as targets by Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish in a three-minute span earned a 2-1 victory Sunday that ended their four-match winless run and trimmed the hole to first-place Liverpool to 4 factors.
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If it wasn’t for the restoration within the second half, City supervisor Pep Guardiola would have stumbled into the worst streak of leads to his teaching profession, having by no means gone 5 matches with no win.
That was the awful state of affairs dealing with Guardiola and City after striker Elijah Adebayo headed in Andros Townsend’s cross on the again submit within the second minute of first-half stoppage time to present Luton the lead at Kenilworth Road — 5 days after the promoted hosts blew a 3-2 lead in opposition to Arsenal to lose 4-3.
Haaland was sidelined due to a foot damage so City was with out the league’s prime scorer in its bid to supply a fightback.
Still, Rodri was again from suspension and when the Spain midfielder’s surge into the world was stopped by a well timed problem, Silva was there to pounce on the free ball and curl a end into the underside nook within the 62nd.
Grealish then transformed a cross by Julian Alvarez within the sixty fifth.
“People say, ‘City is over already,” Guardiola said. “This is the challenge that we have ahead of us. Prove them wrong and still be there.”
City stayed in fourth place, with Guardiola saying Haaland might be assessed forward of the house sport in opposition to Crystal Palace on Saturday.
NEWCASTLE SUFFERING
The accidents are piling up for Saudi-owned Newcastle, and so are the losses.
With the 4-1 thrashing at Tottenham, Newcastle has misplaced extra video games within the Premier League — six — than the staff had in the entire of the 2022-23 marketing campaign.
Three of them have come within the final 5 video games and away from residence as Newcastle supervisor Eddie Howe struggles to steadiness enjoying home and Champions League soccer amid an damage disaster that has led to him enjoying the identical beginning lineup in 5 straight video games. Next up is its greatest sport of the season, at residence to AC Milan on Wednesday when Newcastle’s Champions League hopes are on the road.
Destiny Udogie scored for the primary time within the Premier League, Richarlison added targets both aspect of the break and Son Heung-min transformed a late penalty for Tottenham, which hadn’t gained since Oct. 27 — when the staff was unbeaten and prime of the standings.
There have been 4 defeats and a draw since then, with Spurs taking the lead in every of these video games however failing to carry on. Not this time, although Joelinton scored a stoppage-time comfort for Newcastle.
SURGING EVERTON
Everton is surging away from the relegation zone, lower than a month after plunging into the underside three after being deducted 10 factors for monetary mismanagement.
A 2-0 win over Chelsea secured a 3rd straight win for Everton, which has moved 4 factors away from third-from final Luton.
Abdoulaye Doucoure scored for the third time in 5 video games, changing a rebound within the 54th after Dominic Calvert-Lewin had a shot saved by Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez. Lewis Dobbin added a second within the second minute of stoppage time.
After spending round $1 billion on gamers within the final three switch home windows, Chelsea is not even within the prime half after dropping three of its final 4 video games.
The guests additionally misplaced proper again Reece James to a different damage after he was pressured off within the twenty seventh minute with a suspected hamstring downside.
IN-FORM JIMENEZ
Raul Jimenez is having fun with a brand new lease of life at Fulham.
The Mexico worldwide went via some lean occasions after sustaining a career-threatening head damage whereas enjoying for Wolverhampton in November 2020. From being one of the vital sought-after strikers within the Premier League, he appeared to lose all of his confidence and was bought to Fulham in July.
With his Twenty second-minute strike in Fulham’s 5-0 win over West Ham, Jimenez has 4 targets in his final 5 video games and is main a midseason resurgence from the London membership.
Willian and Tosin Adarabioyo added first-half targets whereas Harry Wilson and Carlos Vinicius added extra after the break as Fulham scored at the very least three targets for the fourth straight sport, after doing so in opposition to Wolverhampton, Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.
It was a second straight 5-0 win, after thrashing Forest by that rating in midweek.
Marco Silva’s staff is now in tenth place and solely three factors behind ninth-place West Ham, whose four-match unbeaten run within the league got here to an finish.
Source: www.hindustantimes.com
