With a convincing 3-0 victory against Everton, Ilkay Gundogan scored twice for the second game in a row to help Manchester City close the gap on the Premier League championship to six points.
Gundogan scored twice, although Erling Haaland’s header, his 36th league goal of the season, came in between. If Arsenal loses its next two games against Brighton & Hove Albion and Nottingham Forest, City may potentially win the league championship against Chelsea on the following Sunday.
If Leicester City defeats Liverpool at home on Monday, Sean Dyche’s squad will fall back into the bottom three.
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Rapid response 1. Man City has the ideal pregame against Real Madrid.
Pep Guardiola, the manager of the City, had grumbled that his club had to play Everton on Sunday while Champions League rival Real Madrid benefited from having a day off after playing Getafe. But at the conclusion of the contest at Goodison Park, City had the ideal setup for the second leg of the semifinal on Wednesday.
By defeating Everton thanks to goals from Gundogan and Haaland, Guardiola’s squad moved closer to completing the first leg of a possible triple and avoided any injury worries. Even if Arsenal keeps winning Premier League games, City now just needs six points to clinch their third straight championship. City also have a substantially stronger goal differential than the Gunners, so winning one game and drawing the other two will very probably be enough for them to win the title.
Three games remain to claim the championship, two wins remain in the Champions League, and Manchester United awaits in the FA Cup final. The treble is definitely starting to take shape for City, and their match against Real on Wednesday seems to be the hardest hurdle left to overcome.
This forced City to play on Sunday. Arsenal’s Premier League pursuit of City prevented them from having such a luxury, but they were still able to sail through without much concern.
Six games remain to win the Triple Crown, and things are starting to look simple for Guardiola and his team.
2. Is Gundogan still releasable?
At the conclusion of this season, Gundogan’s contract with City ends, and the German international has expressed little interest in signing a new one. The 32-year-old allegedly has an offer from Barcelona to go to Spotify Camp Nou as a free agent after spending seven years in Manchester. He will undoubtedly depart City this summer, it appears.
It would be crazy for City to not make one last effort to retain Gundogan since he has been a crucial player throughout Guardiola’s tenure as manager. His performance this season has been excellent. In addition to scoring both goals in last week’s 2-1 victory against Leeds, he also had two goals and an assist in the game-winning effort at Goodison Park. His first goal was really skillful; he controlled the ball on his thigh before improvising to beat Everton custodian Jordan Pickford.
Few players serve as greater illustrations of the ideal contemporary footballer than Gundogan. He is a model of consistency and can play in a number of roles, including defensive midfield, offensive midfield, and even as a false No. 9. However, there are occasions when a player seeks a fresh challenge, so who can blame Gundogan if the opportunity to join Barcelona in LaLiga tempts him?
But you can guarantee that Guardiola will make an effort to change his mind.
3. Dyche has two games to salvage Everton.
Due to City’s recent run, one might even say that this game was finished the minute they grabbed the lead. Dyche took a realistic perspective of his team’s chances by writing off the second half.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin, a center-forward, was replaced by Dyche at halftime, and Idrissa Gueye was taken off the field after 56 minutes because the manager is aware that both players are essential to his team’s chances of escaping relegation.
Everton knows they may already be secure with 32 points going into their last two games against Wolverhampton Wanderers and AFC Bournemouth, but it’s likely they’ll need to win at least one of them to remain above of Leeds United and Leicester. even have to triumph in both. Everton’s chances of defeating City after falling down 2-0 at the break were slim, so Dyche decided to rest his key players for the remaining two games.
Everton’s scenario is greatly influenced by Calvert-Lewin’s extended absence due to injury this season, therefore Dyche is dependent on the English attacker playing in the last two games. Calvert-Lewin was outstanding for the 45 minutes he played against City, but he could never hold Everton back against Guardiola’s team. What he can do over the next two weeks will be crucial.
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Top and worst performers
Ilkay Gundogan is the best. Guardiola can depend on the City midfielder to perform whether he is a regular or is only called upon when necessary. a model citizen.
Dominic Calvert-Lewin is the best. The Everton attacker gave the Toffees some hope before City scored, which was an incredibly difficult assignment to take on the whole City defenders and give an opening for his side that was under pressure.
Dwight McNeil is the best. To escape relegation, Everton will require determination and dedication, and the former Burnley winger provided an illustration of what Dyche would want of his team in their last two games.
Worst: Mason Holgate, who missed a crucial opportunity to give Everton the lead after 35 minutes. Everton’s chances of a successful outcome were dashed when City scored the first goal two minutes later.
Alex Iwobi, worst The former Arsenal midfielder had a tonne of first-half possessions, but he was unable to capitalise on them while in City territory.
James Garner, worst had a fantastic season last year, aiding Nottingham Forest in their promotion from the Championship, but his lack of skill at this level was evident versus City.
What the players and management said after the game
Guardiola told Sky Sports, “It was a terrific win. “Right away, we performed well. Every victory brings us a little bit closer, but games against Chelsea and Brighton will be challenging.We showed patience. Everton didn’t push as hard as we would have anticipated. Every corner seems like it will result in a goal for them because they can be effective in transition, as we witnessed against Brighton. But overall, we had great control of the situation and scored when we needed to.By defeating them [Arsenal] at the Etihad, we fulfilled our obligation. The seasons of both teams have been outstanding. It felt satisfying to triumph in between Real Madrid matches. We now know that two victories in the previous three games will be sufficient.
“I thought we were excellent for 30 minutes, but they showed what a class side they are,” Dyche said in a statement to Sky Sports. We didn’t mind that they moved slowly while passing it in front of us. However, they altered their strategy and travelled further. They took the leftovers and profited from it. They demonstrated what a good team they are by demonstrating their versatility in scoring.We attempted to counter and break effectively, which we sometimes accomplished, but all of a sudden we found ourselves down 2-0.
Important figures (given by ESPN Stats & Information analysis)
– Erling Haaland scored seven headed goals this season, which is second highest among the top five leagues in Europe (Harry Kane leads with ten).
– Gundogan achieves back-to-back league hat tricks for Man City, the third time in his career.
– Man City has gone 14 Premier League games without suffering a defeat, which is the longest ongoing undefeated record among the top five leagues in Europe.
Everton is next: The Toffees still have two games to keep their Premier League status. On Saturday, they will first visit Wolverhampton Wanderers, then on May 28, they will host AFC Bournemouth.
Manchester City: With the first leg of their Champions League semifinal game tied at 1-1, Real Madrid will travel to the Etihad on Wednesday. The Premier League’s top team will then travel to play Chelsea on May 21.
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