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Man City reclaims the top of the Premier League

BrotherJust a few hours after Liverpool reached the top of the table in round 31 on the evening of April 2, Man City quickly became the leader of the Premier League by defeating host Burnley 2-0.

Victory helps Man City had 73 points in 30 matches, re-establishing a one-point gap over Liverpool as was the order before the half-month international break. In the next round, Man City and Liverpool will face off directly at Etihad. The success or failure of each team in this match promises to have a huge impact on their outcome on the championship track.

Burnley are standing at the bottom of the scoreboard and will face two direct competitors for relegation – Everton and Norwich – in just the next 10 days. They therefore seem to only play in moderation most of the time, to recharge for the next two matches that are more vital.





De Bruyne celebrates opening the scoring in the 5th minute. Photo: Twitter / Man City

De Bruyne celebrates opening the scoring in the 5th minute. Photo: Twitter / Man City

This explains why Man City spent 90 leisurely minutes against an opponent that they won in the last 9 matches with a total score of 31-1. The percentage of ball control is always maintained by the defending champions at 75-83% throughout the time. Man City also finished more than three times with 16 shots, compared to only 3 of the host. And even after more than an hour after being led 2-0 by the away team, Burnley still could not reverse the situation even though Man City relaxed in the second half.

At Turf Moor, Man City only took five minutes to open the scoring from a set-up like a practice kick. They deployed the ball from Joao Cancelo on the left into the middle, allowing Rodri to press through the home defense to the right. Sterling, with a touch in the 16m50, delivers the ball as if placed to Kevin de Bruyne swipe right foot to beat goalkeeper Nick Pope.

20 minutes later, the gap was doubled from a simple but good combination of Man City. De Bruyne received the ball near the middle of the field slightly to the right, poked the gap down to let Sterling race to speed, past a home defender. The England striker’s subsequent pass was kicked by Ilkay Gundogan with one touch. The ball lightly hit the leg of a Burnley player, changing direction, making Pope unable to react.

When they met at Turf Moor last season, Man City also soon created a 2-0 lead after 38 minutes thanks to Gabriel Jesus and Sterling, then played leisurely, keeping the advantage until the end of time. Today, that scenario is reproduced by Guardiola’s stars.





Guardiola directs Man City players at Turf Moor stadium on April 2.  Photo: premierleague.com

Guardiola directs Man City players at Turf Moor stadium on April 2. Photo: premierleague.com

Due to the two legs of the Champions League quarter-final match against Atletico Madrid and the great battle between Liverpool in the 32nd round of the English Premier League in the next 10 days, Man City almost only prioritizes control of the ball in the second half, instead of pushing up the intensity. . Guardiola also carefully withdrew Phil Foden – who kicked the virtual number 9 in this match, and then De Bruyne off the field in the middle of the second half to keep them for the upcoming fierce journey.

That helped Burnley breathe easier after the break, creating some waves on the opponent’s goal, but they were not sharp enough to create mutations. In the opposite direction, Man City could have widened the gap if Jesus – replacing Foden in the 69th minute – was not too ungrateful. In the 80th minute, when Bernardo hit the ball to the right, the Brazilian striker kicked the ball and hit the post. The ball flew out just as he plunged, and despite being in an empty position, Jesus failed to eat when the back kick sent the ball wide of the target.

But 2-0 is enough to make Guardiola and his players happy. Man City has just regained the top position, while preserving the force and fitness for the quarter-final first leg against Atletico Madrid on April 5.

Nhat Tao

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