LONDON • For a team with Manchester City's ambitions, Huddersfield were obliging opponents.
Pep Guardiola's team duly took advantage of a side whose toes seem tagged for the relegation morgue and, in the process, renewed their threat in the Premier League title race after a comfortable 3-0 away victory yesterday.
The gap at the top of the table is back to four points and the message for Liverpool is loud and clear - it is going to be a heck of a job to shake City off.
Not that this was the most devastating performance the league champions will deliver this season.
Indeed, they might reflect it was a missed opportunity to add even more sheen to their goal difference.
Yet it is difficult to be too critical when the truth was Guardiola's men could win with something to spare despite a performance, by their high standards, that seldom got above six out of 10.
Since Liverpool's Roberto Firmino became the last player to score against them on Jan 3, City have now scored 23 times in all competitions without a single one coming back the other way.
NOTHING MORE THAN WE DESERVED
The way we played we didn't deserve more than three goals. We will improve in the future. We have to demand more from ourselves in every game and do our best.
PEP GUARDIOLA, Man City manager, on a relentless drive to better his side.
It works out at a goal, on average, every 17 minutes and, if anything, it was probably a surprise they did not add more goals against a Huddersfield side put together by caretaker manager Mark Hudson.
City were also denied a clear penalty when referee Andre Marriner missed Terence Kongolo's foul on Raheem Sterling and, to Guardiola's irritation, they might have allowed a touch of complacency to creep in once Danilo got lucky for the opening goal. Christopher Schindler inadvertently diverted the City defender's shot into his own net for their opener.
Maybe it was too straightforward for the away side. Too easy, even. Perhaps it was a direct consequence of neither David Silva nor Bernardo Silva starting the match.
Yet City did have Kevin de Bruyne and Ilkay Gundogan at the John Smith's Stadium-and it would have been reasonable to think Sergio Aguero's focus might have been sharpened by the fact he had been chosen ahead of Gabriel Jesus, the scorer of seven goals in his last three matches.
Whatever the reason, it was certainly unusual to see the reigning champions take the lead, then drop their tempo rather than pour forward again, in the way that is expected of such a team.
Guardiola, one imagines, had a thing or two to say about it at half-time and City quickly put that right after the break, with goals from Sterling (54th minute) and Leroy Sane (56th) to wrap up the contest.
The scorers admitted that Guardiola had given his team an earful at the break for not going for the Terriers' jugular, with Sane revealing he "woke us up a little bit at half-time".
The German said: "We played quicker in the second half and were better positionally.
"He always tries to give us the solution, what we can do better, and he did it again."
And there can certainly be no slackening of standards with the Reds stretching their unbeaten home league run to 32 games after beating Crystal Palace 4-3 on Saturday.
Jurgen Klopp's men, in the process, set a club record of 60 league points from 23 matches, topping their previous best tally by one, and the German praised his side, calling the mark "crazy".
AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, THE GUARDIAN
SOCCER/ Japan coach disappointed but pleased with progress at Asian Cup Japan's head coach Hajime Moriyasu walks on the podium after loosing the AFC Asian Cup final match between Japan and
Japan's coach disappointed but pleased with progress at Asian Cup
Albirex Niigata might have won the title last year, but things may not be the same when the S.League kicks off on 26 February. Radical changes within the club The White Swans have continued the
At Monster, we're dedicated to making the job search process simple—and stress free. Our job search engine is built with powerful technology that aims to match the right job opportunities with the right people. To find the latest and most relevant job openings, simply browse by job title, company, city or state.
Top 18 Common Job Interview Questions and Answers - indeed.com
India skipper Virat Kohli congratulates his opposite number Tim Paine after Australia won the second Test match between Australia and India in Perth. the victory, saying: "This was the best
India vs Australia: Tim Paine's 'new Aussie team' proves
Four fans get stadium ban. TV cameras caught a home supporter hurling vitriol at Manchester City forward Raheem Sterling during the 2-0 win and the club have since said they will not hesitate to
When fans get banned for life from sports stadiums - The
Feb 26, 2019 · Leicester had long viewed Rodgers as an ideal successor to Claude Puel but there were doubts as to whether he could be persuaded to leave Celtic in the middle of the season, with the Scottish
Brendan Rodgers at Leicester: The main challenges he will
Get a report of the Brighton & Hove Albion vs. Southampton 2018/2019 English Premier League football match. Hojbjerg strike gives Southampton win at Brighton.
Hojbjerg strike gives Southampton 1-0 win at Brighton
Pep Guardiola salutes Liverpool after Man City title triumph Champions City see off Liverpool's challenge to seal back-to-back titles on final day of the season
Guardiola salutes 'incredible' City -football- my.t - île Maurice
Football: Man City still teenagers in adult world of
ICC questions: Madrid without Ronaldo, Mourinho mood, Liverpool title credentials of them during their time in the United States. Real Madrid face Manchester United in the International
United, Spurs, Juve and Inter ready to heat up ICC Singapore
Tottenham's Harry Kane is fouled by Chelsea's Kepa Arrizabalaga resulting in a penalty during the Carabao Cup Semi Final First Leg match between Tottenham Hotspur and Chelsea, at Wembley Stadium, in London, Britain, on January 8, 2019.
Kane penalty kick gives Tottenham edge over Chelsea in League
FIFA President Gianni Infantino is set to serve a second term after world football's governing body said on Wednesday he would be the only candidate for June's vote.
Infantino sole candidate for FIFA presidency in June vote
Real Madrid have knocked Manchester United off the top of Deloitte's Football Money League, but the Premier League still flexed its financial muscle, with all of England's 'Big Six' featuring
Real Madrid take top spot from Manchester United in 'money
cms.newindianexpress.com/sport/football/2019/jan/24/real-madrid-take-top-spot-from-manchester-united-in-money-league-1929462.html
United had spent the last two years in first place in the financial charts, but they have slipped to third behind European champions Real and Spanish giants Barcelona.
Real Madrid take top spot from Man United in 'money league'
The fine art of celebrating goals in the beautiful game of football. The Africa we all want is an Africa of opportunities. Five things from the Premier League this weekend.
European football Five things we learned in this weekend
0 Kommentare:
Kommentar veröffentlichen