4 December 2024
Man City 3 Nott’m Forest 0
Pep Gardiola has had a hard time of it lately. Since Sunday’s defeat at Anfield, there have been various sightings of him just stopping traffic in Manchester and motioning the number six to bus drivers and cabbies while staring them deadpan in the face. As they welcomed Nott’m Forest to The Etihad, Man City were hoping to put their poor run of form to bed.
De Bruyne returned to the starting line-up, taking the captains armband and seemingly Grealish’s Alice band also. The hosts started well and the Belgian crossed from the right to pick out Haaland in the box. He did nothing wrong as he got a fierce shot away but Sels got down well to save. So close to an early opener for the defending champions.
They did not have to wait long. As a cross came in, De Bruyne headed it towards goal, but as the replay showed, his effort had been blocked on the line. It was in fact Bernardo Silva who had tapped home to give City the lead. As long as they got this duck off their back nobody cared who scored the goals. They were fed up of being the butt of every football-based meme online currently.
As Grealish and De Bruyne put their arms around each other in celebration, you could not help but wonder if this was some sponsorship deal they have done with Claire’s Accessories. They both stood there, Alice bands keeping their flowing locks out of their eyes, smiling at each other. It must be some scene in that dressing room after games, like backstage at a drag show.
Guardiola’s side should have doubled their lead moments later. Gundogan and De Bruyne combined well before Bernardo Silva put a cross into the box. He picked out the run of Gvardiol inch-perfectly. The only surprise was seeing the ball go wide of the goal. It was a glaring miss by the Croatian and would have topped off a superb move for the hosts.
The same player was then caught out at the other end of the pitch. Jota Silva picked his pocket before whipping a ball into Gibbs-White. The England midfielder got a first-time shot away which seemed destined for the bottom corner of the goal. Ederson flung himself full-stretch and got an important hand to it, turning it wide for a corner.
It was one of those moments in the game that you knew would prove crucial to this result. Haaland then played in Gvardiol who only had the keeper to beat. He steered his shot well wide of the target and shows why he plays in defence and not up front. Man City were proving far too wasteful and it had cost them in plenty of games lately.
Forest should have drawn level as Wood was then given a clear-run to goal. He only had the Man City keeper to beat but dragged his shot narrowly wide of the target. The Kiwi immediately hung his head in shame as it became clear what he had done. When you come to a side like this, you need to be clinical in front of goal, you cannot rely upon their wastefulness.
They paid the ultimate price moments later. Doku cut inside Yates and found De Bruyne on the edge of the box. The Belgian only had one thing on his mind and smashed his effort past Sels to give the hosts some breathing space in the game. It was no more than they had deserved, the majority of this first-half had been dominated by City.
After the interval, Murillo decided to try his luck from some way out. He struck it well and the ball swerved sufficiently enough to leave Ederson rooted to the spot. It missed the far post by the narrowest of margins but summed up Forest’s day so far. They had struggled to imprint their game on their opponents and as a result were penned back into their own half too often.
Doku then got his name on the scoresheet in familiar style. He cut inside onto his right foot after dropping his shoulder to send the defender to the shops. The winger then bent his shot into the far corner, giving Sels no chance whatsoever in the Forest goal. If you needed convincing that this game was won, now was your moment. The points were heading Pep’s way.
Man City continued to press and De Bruyne almost added another. He directed his effort just the wrong side of the post. By the high standards he holds himself to, he will be bitterly disappointed not to score. Doku was the next person to waste a chance, similar to his first, but this time he smashed the ball well wide of the target.
The main thing for Pep Guardiola was that his side won a football match. The demons had been lifted and now they could get back to being Man City. With Liverpool’s draw, they reduced the gap to nine points and plenty of the season is still to play. De Bruyne was back, pulling the strings, and making this City team tick once again.
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