Premier League
Sterling penalty for 100th league goal gives leaders Man City win over 10-man Wolves
England forward Raheem Sterling’s 100th Premier League goal was enough to earn leaders Manchester City a 1-0 win over 10-man Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday (Dec 11).
Wolves were doing a fine job of frustrating City in the opening period before striker Raul Jimenez’s dismissal for two yellow cards in quick succession in first-half stoppage time changed the complexion of the game.
City dominated the second half as a result, edging in front through Sterling’s penalty – a decision that required a lengthy Video Assistant Referee check – in the 66th minute.
The home side had plenty of chances to make the result more comfortable, with Jack Grealish’s struggles since becoming the British record transfer in the close season continuing as he missed from close range.
However, one goal proved enough for City who picked up their sixth successive league win to move four points clear of Liverpool, who host Aston Villa later on Saturday, at the top of the standings.
Wolves, who battled hard as decisions went against them at the Etihad Stadium, stay eighth on 21 points from 16 games.
“We were much better when Wolves played with 11 rather than 10 players,” City coach Pep Guardiola said. “It is so difficult to play against a team that don’t want to play or to attack.
“We knew how tough it would be. We were patient all the time. They can punish you on the counter and that has happened in the past against them. In general, we were good but not so clever in the final third.”
Mad moment
The game hinged on one moment of madness. Wolves looked comfortable going into the interval before Jimenez’s needless dismissal gave City the lift they needed.
The Mexico international received his first yellow card for a foul on midfielder Rodri and 31 seconds later got another for blocking Rodri’s free kick having not retreated enough.
“He knows he cannot do that,” Wolves manager Bruno Lage said. “I went into the dressing room and saw his face.
“But the first yellow, he didn’t touch the man and we have 10 men behind the ball. So it is a very hard decision and cost us a lot.”
All-out attack
After the break, it was all-out attack from City, with Conor Coady clearing off the line to deny Ilkay Gundogan.
Referee Jon Moss then further ensured he won’t be welcome in Wolverhampton any time soon after awarding City a penalty for handball against Joao Moutinho.
The Portugal midfielder was adamant the ball hit his ribs but, following a long delay while the VAR checked the incident, Moss’ decision stood.
Sterling slotted the penalty down the middle, becoming the 32nd player to reach 100 Premier League goals.
“(It) is a lovely achievement,” the 27-year-old told BT Sport. “There are some fantastic players in that list. I’m really honoured to be in it now.
“We knew we (City) had to keep patient. They kept it really tight, but we knew if we kept playing we’d get an opportunity – and we did.”
The hosts should have made the win more comfortable.
Bernardo Silva was denied by a smart save from Wolves goalkeeper Jose Sa, while several other last-ditch blocks kept them at bay.
The visitors piled forward late on and had one last-gasp opportunity to snatch a point but Ederson tipped Max Kilman’s header over the bar.
-Reuters
Liverpool beat Crystal Palace 1-0 to remain top of the Premier League as Arsenal and Manchester City came from behind to win on Saturday.
City were 3-2 victors over Fulham to stay one point behind Liverpool, alongside Arsenal who saw off Southampton 3-1.
Arne Slot has now won nine of his first 10 games since succeeding Jurgen Klopp as Liverpool manager, but was frustrated that the visitors invited a late onslaught from the winless Eagles.
Jota prodded the Reds into the lead from Cody Gakpo’s cross on nine minutes.
The Portuguese international was then guilty of missing two big chances to extend Liverpool’s advantage.
Palace failed to make them pay, but victory came at a cost for Slot as goalkeeper Alisson Becker limped off with a hamstring injury.
“If you score the second you break them mentally,” said Slot. “All the fans kept believing in a result because it was only 1-0, even though in my opinion we were the dominant team.”
Fresh from a dominant win over Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League, Arsenal were expected to sweep aside winless Southampton.
But the Saints shocked the Emirates 10 minutes into the second half when Cameron Archer fired in his first Premier League goal since a summer move from Aston Villa.
The lead only lasted three minutes before Kai Havertz scored for the seventh consecutive home game.
Gabriel Martinelli was introduced after an hour and took just eight minutes to make his mark with a finish on the volley from Bukayo Saka’s cross.
Having set up Arsenal’s first two goals, Saka pounced on a loose ball to score the third himself.
Fulham’s outrageous opener
Rodri’s season-long absence due to a serious knee injury is expected to be a major blow to City’s chances of retaining the title for a fifth consecutive season.
But it was the Spaniard’s deputy Mateo Kovacic who scored twice to turn the game around for the champions at the Etihad.
The visitors had not lost since the opening night of the season at Manchester United and led thanks to Andreas Pereira’s finish from an outrageous backheel assist by Raul Jimenez.
Kovacic’s deflected effort quickly brought City level before a cleaner strike less than two minutes into the second half made it 2-1.
Jeremy Doku then smashed into the top corner from outside the box to give City a two-goal cushion, which they needed.
Rodrigo Muniz gave Fulham hope on 88 minutes, but City held out for a 17th consecutive win against the Cottagers.
West Ham eased the pressure on new boss Julen Lopetegui by ending a run of three home defeats to start the new season.
Michail Antonio, Mohammed Kudus, Jarrod Bowen and Lucas Paqueta struck for the Hammers in a 4-1 win over Ipswich, who are still waiting for their first Premier League win 22 years.
There were six goals before half-time as Brentford beat Wolves 5-3 to leave the visitors still rooted to the foot of the table.
Leicester secured their first league win of the season as Facundo Buonanotte’s strike beat Bournemouth 1-0.
Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag faces a huge match if he is to remain in charge when the Red Devils visit Aston Villa in the pick of Sunday’s action.
-AFP
Premier League
Premier League rejects City request to delay next season’s games after Club World Cup
The Premier League has rejected Manchester City’s request to postpone the first two games of the 2025-26 season to help the players recover after their FIFA Club World Cup campaign in the U.S., the club’s manager Pep Guardiola said on Friday.
City and Chelsea are the two English clubs who have qualified for the expanded month-long Club World Cup set to start on June 15. The Premier League’s season will begin in August.
An increasingly packed soccer calendar has been a concern among a growing number of players and managers. A report by global players’ union FIFPRO said some players get only 12% of the year to rest.
The Premier League did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside regular business hours.
City midfielder Rodri said in September that players could be close to strike action over the time they are required to play. A knee ligament injury has since put him out for the season.
“I don’t know if we will play more games than the treble year (2022-23)… maybe we’ll play less games,” Guardiola told reporters.
“The Premier League has not allowed us to postpone the first two games for our recovery. Thank you so much. They don’t postpone these games so that will be the moment of, oh, what do we have to do?”
He said the Club World Cup will make it even more difficult for clubs to manage player workload.
-Reuters
Manchester United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe said a decision about under-fire manager Erik ten Hag is not his call, and was reticent about whether he still has faith in the team’s boss amid their worst start to the Premier League season since 1986-87.
“I don’t want to answer that question,” Ratcliffe told the BBC. “I like Erik. I think he’s a very good coach but at the end of the day it’s not my call, it’s the management team that’s running Manchester United that have to decide how we best run the team in many different respects.
“That team that’s running Manchester United has only been together since June or July. They weren’t there in January, February, March or April — Omar (Berrada, CEO), (Sporting Director) Dan Ashworth — they only arrived in July.
“They’ve only been there . . . you can count it in weeks almost — they’ve not been there a long time so they need to take stock and make some sensible decisions.”
Ten Hag’s job was the subject of speculation for much of last season en route to the team’s lowest Premier League finish of eighth. After an FA Cup final victory over Manchester City and an end-of-season review, however, Ten Hag signed a new contract to extend his stay at Old Trafford until 2026.
“Our objective is very clear, we want to take Manchester United back to where it should be, and it’s not there yet, obviously, that’s very clear,” Ratcliffe said.
Ten Hag continues to plead for patience from fans with the team languishing 13th in the Premier League table, having lost three of their six opening games. They were headed towards defeat by Porto in the Europa League on Thursday before Harry Maguire scored a last-gasp goal to salvage a 3-3 draw.
-Reuters
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