Wherever Erling Haaland is, there is hope. The Norwegian striker only took 12 minutes to score when he returned to the starting lineup, helping Manchester City beat Spurs 1-0. These 3 important points help the reigning Premier League champions return to the top 4.
Haaland's 28th goal this season in all competitions was a typical precise finish. He headed behind Jeremy Doku's pass to the post near Guglielmo Vicario's goal.
In fact, it was the only sign of an accurate finish throughout the match when Man City missed a series of opportunities. Among them, Savinho's unfortunate shots were unlucky. Even after scoring, Haaland wasted many opportunities.
Finally, the important thing for Pep Guardiola's team at the moment is 3 points. Haaland's 20th Premier League goal of the season has helped him become only the second player to surpass that number in his first three campaigns. Ruud Van Nistelrooy did the same for Manchester United from 2001 to 2004.
Haaland has also equal Harry Kane's record of 10 or more goals at home and 10 or more away in three consecutive seasons. Haaland has clearly given Man City more attacking power, but his contribution is still not enough to hide a truth. That is the fragility of the Citizens' playing style.
Spurs played poorly in the first half but gradually regained their spirit in the second half. Pep Guardiola has clearly expressed his concern about the home team's continuous attacks.
It may be time for coach Ange Postecoglou to prioritize the Europa League over the Premier League because Tottenham are struggling in 13th place. And perhaps when looking back, this was that time.
Tottenham played without Dejan Kulusevski, Son Heung-min and Djed Spence in the starting lineup. These are their 3 best players in the match against Ipswich Town last weekend. This is clearly a move to save Postecoglou's strength rather than show confidence in the substitutes.
That rotation certainly contributed to Tottenham's slow start. And the old scenario repeats itself, Postecoglou's side cannot come back, despite the determination they have shown.
In the end, Man City were able to consolidate their position in the race for a ticket to the Champions League before the match in the 5th round of the FA Cup against Plymouth Argyle.
"Man City will not be able to return to the way they were before this season. At that time, we were too strong. But I believe the team will return and dominate every tournament from next season.
We have a very young squad. The three attacking players above are the future of the team. Nico will still play an important role when Rodri returns. And today, people have seen the potential of Khusanov. Josko is also very young, so there is still a lot of room for development" - Guardiola said after the win over Spurs.
