Manchester City can reach out and touch the Premier League title after yet another convincing win, this time against Everton. Pep Guardiola’s side were heavily fancied to come out with the three points, as you can imagine, but nobody could’ve anticipated just how easy it’d look. The league leaders have been running away with it at the top of the table ever since the season began in August, and now, they’ve set themselves up for the perfect finale against bitter rivals Manchester United next weekend.
Electric start
Before all that, however, it needs to be said that this game against Everton was a masterclass in how to handle an away performance in the top flight. From the very first whistle, City didn’t look troubled by the atmosphere at Goodison and they certainly weren’t afraid of anything that the Toffees could throw at them. The home side have been an inconsistent unit under Sam Allardyce despite pulling away from the relegation zone, and they continued that trajectory in this game.
Following Manchester United’s victory earlier in the day it became clear that City needed to respond, and boy oh boy did they accomplish that goal tonight. They came firing out of the blocks in a manner that would’ve made Anthony Joshua proud, with Leroy Sane turning home David Silva’s cross on the volley to give them a thoroughly deserved lead. Everton looked like they may take advantage of the old ‘you’re most vulnerable when you’ve just scored’ saying as Bolasie headed over the bar, but City made them pay with a header of their own as Gabriel Jesus guided the ball into the back of the net to make it 2-0.
Champions elect
The wind had been completely taken out of Allardyce’s side, and it was really starting to show. David Silva clearly wanted to get in on the act with a couple of close chances, as he tried to once again prove to the world why he’s one of the most underrated talents in Europe. Then, as if it were a training exercise, he squared the ball to Raheem Sterling who re-discovered his scoring touch in order to put the game beyond the reach of the hosts before we’d even reached the 40-minute mark.
From that point on they eased their way towards halftime, and in the second half, they really took their foot off the gas. City sat back and were almost toying with Everton at times, although to their credit, they showed some urgency and it paid off as Yannick Bolasie thundered an effort in off of both posts to make up for his earlier header.
Final Thoughts
It was a routine win by every definition of the word, and now, the stage is set for arguably City’s biggest game since their last title triumph. They’ll host rivals Manchester United next Saturday, knowing full well that a victory will seal their third reign as Premier League champions.
Prior to that, however, they need to take into consideration that they’ve got a first leg Champions League tie against Liverpool at Anfield just a few days before their derby day showdown. With so much being on the line over the course of both encounters, Pep Guardiola will need to really manage his resources in order to ensure City come away with two valuable victories.
Match Report
Everton: Pickford (5.5); Coleman (5), Keane (5.5), Jagielka (5.5), Baines (6); Schneiderlin (4.5), Rooney (4.5); Bolasie (6), Walcott (5.5), Calvert-Lewin (6); Tosun (5),
Subs: Davies (4.5), Baningime (N/A), Niasse (N/A)
Man City: Ederson (6); Kompany (7), Laporte (6.5), Otamendi (6.5), Walker (7.5); Fernandinho (7), De Bruyne (8), D Silva (9); Sane (8), Sterling (7), Jesus (7.5)
Subs: B Silva (6), Gundogan (N/A), Danilo (N/A)
Referee: Paul Tierney
Goals: Bolasie (63′) : Sane (4′), Jesus (12′), Sterling (37′)
Yellow Cards: N/A
Red Cards: N/A
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