Engulfed in the last steps of a climb that could take them towards a new treble, Manchester City is trying to dose its efforts without affecting the results. He left Aston Villa behind (4-1) while Haaland, Stones, who seems recovered after a few weeks out, and De Bruyne celebrated first on the bench and then on the wing. Guardiola did not need to take off his tracksuit. At the controls was the extraordinary Phil Foden, who offered a new recital. He scored the three goals that sealed the victory, he created the one that opened the scoring, he was in all the sauces, which were not exactly insipid. Guardiola’s team had a lot of substance in a match that seemed like an ambush: Villa, fourth in the Premier League, was just five points behind and had already surpassed them in the first round. But City and Foden gave them a monumental review.
The game seemed to get complicated for City when in an episodic action the Colombian Durán tied Rodri’s initial goal. It was a mirage because the champion played with the conviction typical of great teams, of those who believe in what they do and execute it full of conviction. City did not hurry, they moved the ball, subdued Villa, suffocated them in the pressure after losing and damaged them every time they turned the ball to the flanks to look for one against one or two against two.
And Foden.
English talent is a point and apart. His good footing was known, his ability to clarify and illuminate every action that happens through his boots, especially through his silk left foot. He now he adds goal. He has 20 between Premier, Cup and Champions. “I’m starting to understand how I should play inside,” he explained a few weeks ago. Guardiola always valued him, since he was a teenager who stood out in the City nursery, but for a long time he opted to line him up wide. The Catalan coach praised his aggressiveness in one-on-one situations and his dribbling ability. Now, he has completed the modeling. Foden is a total player. “He will be a legendary footballer,” concluded Guardiola a few weeks ago when he warned that, without a doubt, we are facing the best footballer of this season in the Premier.
At City there is talk of making history. They want to be the first English club to win four consecutive leagues. But today they do not have the dictation to do so because everything is in the hands of Liverpool, which has the same points, but hosts bottom-placed Sheffield United this Thursday at Anfield. The networks They will start with the aim of regaining the lead, a position to which Arsenal returned with a one-point advantage after beating Luton Town (2-0) in a match that was defined in the first half with goals from Odegaard and the Japanese Hashioka in own goal. Mikel Arteta also managed sweats. If a double duel against Real Madrid awaits City in the next two weeks, Bayern awaits Arsenal and is driven by the hope of becoming great in Europe again.
The London team needs to lift a trophy, once again installed among the nobility of each competition in which it participates. So far this year they have won nine of their 10 games played in the Premier, with 35 goals for and four against. Their only setback was the draw last weekend at City’s home ground. And behind them is the push to eliminate Porto in the Champions League in an agonizing penalty shootout. Arteta is now working to expand his player base. “Only then will we be a bigger team,” he explained after observing the good performance of Smith Rowe and Reiss Nelson. Rice and Martinelli only played for a little more than a quarter of an hour. Bukayo Saka stayed in the stands.
Defining weeks arrive and all the efforts add up. Liverpool’s expected victory that will return them to the lead will be followed on Sunday by a trip to Old Trafford, where not long ago Manchester United inflicted a painful defeat in the Cup. Before, on Saturday, Arsenal will go down to Brighton and Manchester City A visit to Selhurst Park awaits, a venue where Crystal Palace often puts them in trouble.
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