Ilkay Gundogan scored a brace to help Manchester City produce one of the comfortable football results of the weekend in the Premier League. City will win the title on Saturday if Arsenal loses at Nottingham Forest or on Sunday if they defeat Chelsea due to their four-point lead over an Arsenal team that has played one more game. Man City’s captain Gundogan is now guiding the team to its fifth championship in six years. He scored twice last week as Leeds won. The next week, he helped out at Real Madrid. Another example of why Pep Guardiola is keen for the 32-year-old to extend his contract with the club through its expiration this summer occurred at Goodison Park.
His first goal, which broke Everton’s resistance after 37 minutes, was breathtaking. Soon after, he switched roles and crossed the ball for Erling Haaland to score with only his third touch of the game. In minute 51, a superb free kick by Gundogan put an end to the game. It was a unique approach to celebrate his 300th game for the team. With 11 straight victories in this tournament, City is currently just a few wins away from clinching the Premier League championship. The second leg of their Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid is on Wednesday at the Etihad, so they must first return to European issues.
Moments earlier, Everton nearly equalized when Mason Holgate narrowly missed converting at the back post from a corner and James Tarkowski saw his header from another set-piece deflected by Ederson onto the bar. However, a difficult afternoon was made worse by the forced exit of crucial player Dominic Calvert-Lewin at halftime. They continue to be in 17th place, only one point above the drop zone.
Everton hadn’t defeated Man City since 2017, but with their unexpected 5-1 victory over Brighton on Monday and using their draw at the Etihad on New Year’s Eve as a guide, there was cause for optimism at Goodison Park, and Dyche’s team got off to a strong start, despite playing mostly without the ball. In the first 10 minutes, City held 81 percent of the ball, but the home team controlled the onslaught admirably. Haaland, the leading scorer in the Premier League, did not touch the ball until the 26th minute. Riyad Mahrez’s long-range curler was the opening shot of the game, which didn’t occur for a few minutes.
Additionally, Calvert-Lewin gave the home team a useful outlet, and after the striker earned a corner on minute 35, Everton nearly took the lead. Holgate just couldn’t quite get his foot around the ball to drive it home after Tarkowski headed the cross down. His response demonstrated how great of a chance it was. After City moved the ball well down the left and Gundogan put the ball up into the six-yard box, Haaland headed in from close range two minutes later to bring his domestic league total for the season to 36.
Calvert-Lewin’s injury-ravaged season took a further turn for the worse, keeping the striker off the pitch for the second half. When Gundogan curled in a beautiful free-kick shortly after the restart, Everton’s unproductive day was all but certain. After Haaland attempted a magnificent scissor kick, Tarkowski did hit the crossbar from another corner, but both teams were considering the opportunities ahead of them as the game came to a close. While Everton, who have already lost a club-record 10 league games this season, prepares for a trip to Wolves next weekend that might be crucial for their survival prospects, City continues its quest for glory on three fronts against Real Madrid.
“For about thirty minutes, I felt we were terrific, but they quickly proved how classy they are. They demonstrated how they can score in many ways by altering their game plan, extending the form, and using it,” Everton boss Sean Dyche said. “At times, we broke well and countered. But after falling down 2-0, things get very challenging. We attempted to instill confidence in the team [at 3-0], and there was undoubtedly a spirit of perseverance.”
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