- – Phil McNulty, BBC football editor
- Etihad Stadium
3 hours ago
Manchester City is close to achieving its fourth title
Manchester City overcame the shock of their Champions League semi-final exit following losing in Madrid, and inflicted a severe defeat on Newcastle United, to top the Premier League by three points.
And the best title holder to take advantage of Liverpool’s draw with Tottenham. He not only improved his position in the Premier League, but also boosted his lead by goal difference.
Chris Wood missed an early goal opportunity for Newcastle, and his team paid the price when Raheem Sterling put Pep Guardiola’s team in front following 19 minutes.
Aymeric Laporte added the second goal before the end of the first half following Newcastle goalkeeper Martin Dubravka missed Ilkay Gundogan’s shot.
An hour into the match, Rodri confirmed the victory of Manchester City with a header close to the post, from a corner kick by Kevin De Bruyne.
City Newcastle excelled in the match and on the big goal difference, following substitute Phil Foden scored the fourth goal in the last moments of the match, following which Raheem Sterling concluded the result with five goals to none, following scoring in the last minute.
Strength and elegance in a performanceMeeting City
Manchester City faced many questions before the match, regarding the character of the team and its handling of the loss of its place in the Champions League final. Especially since the final was in their hands, until Real Madrid made an amazing comeback and managed to win.
Winning in this way, and its great importance, provided the perfect answer.
picture released, Getty Images
There was some tension at the Etihad Stadium at the start of the match, and Newcastle striker, Chris Wood, would have increased the tension if he had not finished a poor chance, following a cross pass from Alan Saint-Maximin, during the first exchange of opportunities in the match.
On the other hand, City showed all their level in the faces, and when Sterling scored the first goal, there was a sense that there was only one expected outcome of the match.
There was a determination in performance and result to lift their spirits and put their team in pole position in pursuit of the title, with a three-point lead with their last three games. Also, this win moved them from behind by one goal behind Liverpool, to leading by four goals.
The last minutes witnessed complete control of the City players, and the only problem the team faced was the replacement of main defender Ruben Diaz.
However, the two late goals gave City an important boost, should the team falter in any of the final matches.
Guardiola, who was in pain in Madrid, was more lively at the start of the match. He even asked the City fans to salute Gabriel Jesus the moment he was replaced, which the public responded with as it should.
Now, the fate of the City players is in their hands, as they have 3 matches left, two of them away from home once morest Wolverhampton Wanderers and West Ham United, before playing the last match at home once morest Aston Villa.
A hard lesson for Newcastle
Newcastle United has huge ambition and funding following the Saudi owners acquired the club. But the match was a real lesson that revealed to them the size of the gap between their position now and the position they want to achieve.
Liverpool taught Newcastle the first lesson last week at St James’ Park, and Manchester City sent a strong message following their overwhelming superiority over Newcastle, who is still in its early stages of rebuilding under the supervision of coach Eddie Howe.
Newcastle showed a sign or two of a promising future, but this match made clear their current situation.
The Newcastle Fans’ League sounded harmonious, and there is clearly optimism regarding the team, but that has to be tempered by the fact that there is no quick or easy way to reach their ultimate destination.
City were completely dominant, and the end result was a sobering reflection of how far behind Newcastle, who had just begun their run.
Manager Howe has done a fine job of moving the team to a safe place in the Premier League following surviving weeks in a row relegation was a realistic possibility, but now more important work awaits him during the summer.
