A brace by Ilkay Gundogan condemned Sam Allardyce to defeat in his first game in charge of Leeds as Manchester City held on to a secure 2-1 win to move four points clear at the top of the Premier League.
Gundogan’s two goals in the first half gave City what looked like an easy win that put them four points ahead of the rest of the Premier League.
But when the German had a chance to make it a hat trick, he hit the post, and within a minute, Rodrigo scored a goal to make it a tense finish for the team that won last year.
“The game is not over. It shows how nice and generous Erling is. If it is 4-0 with 10 minutes left, OK. But at 2-0? Erling is the best penalty taker right now so he has to take it,” said Guardiola.
“If Gundo scores everyone is ‘OK, hat-trick, well done’. But a taker is a taker. At 2-0, this is a business, not a situation where we can forget it.”
Haaland had a rare bad day, as he missed a number of chances to add to his 51 goals in all competitions this season. The decision to pass on responsibility was the last bad thing about his day.
Because City has scored a lot more goals than Arsenal, Guardiola’s team is likely going to need at least eight points from their last four games to win their fifth league title in six years.
Sam Allardyce’s return to the bench didn’t change Leeds’s luck right away, and they are still only out of the relegation zone because of goal difference.
The former England manager was teased right away with chants of “You’re getting fired in the morning” as the visitors couldn’t stop wave after wave of attacks from City.
But he felt good about the way his team finished the game.
“Second-half we sorted it out, and we got on the front foot to try and challenge them,” said Allardyce.
After the national anthem was played before the game started to celebrate King Charles III’s coronation, the game quickly turned into a parade.
Guardiola could even make seven changes because he had one eye on Tuesday’s Champions League semi-final trip to Real Madrid.
Gundogan was one of the players who was brought back into the team. The German midfielder showed Haaland how it’s done twice when he took passes from Riyad Mahrez and found the bottom corner from the edge of the box.
Kevin De Bruyne’s return from injury was a big boost for City’s bid for a treble of trophies, and Haaland should have finished off De Bruyne’s brilliant pass, but he shot wide.
Haaland scored 35 goals in one season against West Ham on Wednesday, which was a new Premier League record.
And the 22-year-old will think he should have had a seventh hat-trick in his first season of English football, let alone walk away empty-handed.
Haaland hit a header too close to Joel Robles and then hit the post with a shot when he only had to beat the keeper.
In the second half, City was able to take their foot off the gas, which seemed like a great way to get ready for their mission to get back at Madrid.
But in just 60 seconds, the mood changed a lot when Gundogan’s penalty shot hit the post after Phil Foden was taken down.
Even before Rodrigo scored after Manuel Akanji made a mistake, Guardiola was seen yelling at Haaland, “You have to take it.”
Gundogan’s manager gave him a cold welcome when he was taken off the pitch in the last minute of play, but City easily won the game and widened their lead at the top of the table.
“First he showed to Erling that he was quite mad about that and then also he had a go at me,” said Gundogan.
“The moment Erling grabbed the ball, I was sure he was going to take it but he looked out for me. I checked with him a few times to make sure he was sure.”
Photo by EPA/TIM KEETON
