Everton 1 Man City 3
Pep Guardiola’s side returned to Premier League action after being crowned Club World Cup champions in Saudi. It was a tricky fixture to come back to as Sean Dyche’s Everton had hit a rich run of form, which had seen them climb out of the bottom three.
Grealish came steaming forward early on, as the ball was worked to Nunes. His shot was saved by Pickford but the ball came straight back out to Alvarez. He shot but somehow the Everton keeper got a foot to it, to steer the ball behind for a corner.
The Man City winger seemed to be in good form as he toe-poked an effort towards goal but Pickford reacted well to get down and make a one-handed save. Grealish held his head in his hands as he thought he had given his side the lead with the cheeky effort.
Rodri, usually so dependable for Man City, was then robbed of the ball in defence. McNeil crossed the ball low into the box and Harrison stabbed it home as Goodison Park erupted. It had been completely against the run of play but Toffees’ fans were not complaining.
Credit: @Everton
Andre Gomes then swung a corner into the box. As it was half-cleared, it dropped to Harrison who only had eyes for goal. His effort was well-saved by Ederson as the Brazilian keeper tipped it over the bar to keep his side in the game.
As the second half was tightly contested, Phil Foden received the ball outside the box and quickly shifted it onto his left foot. His strike, with barely any back lift, caught Pickford off-guard and the ball was rippling the back of the net before he knew anything about it.
The dangerous Foden then got another shot off at goal but it was well blocked by The Toffees’ defence. Ake then followed up on the rebound and the whole Man City team went mental as they demanded a penalty for the subsequent block from Onana.
Weirdly, the referee only decided to point to the spot after the visitors crowded around him demanding it be given. The replay showed that it had struck the Everton midfielders’ arm as he slid in to get his body between the ball and goal.
Julian Alvarez sent his penalty straight down the middle of the goal and was relieved to see it go in as Pickford got his legs to the effort. He just could not keep the ball out. This was a huge turning point in the game for Pep Guardiola’s side.
Jordan Pickford then gifted the points to the visitors. As he tried to clear the ball from outside of his box in the corner, it was partially blocked. It broke to Bernardo Silva who, seeing the keeper off his line, lifted it into the back of the net to send the away fans into party mode.
Credit: @ManCity
This was a huge statement by Man City as they told the teams above them ‘we’re coming for you’. With a game in hand over most teams, should they win it, they will only be two points off leaders Liverpool and level with Arsenal. Game on in the Premier League title race.
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