EL CONDUCTOR
Masterful Pep orchestrates another six-goal City romp
THIS was another ominous, hungry and complete team performance from a Manchester City side who continue to seek new standards. This was another pointer to Pep Guardiola’s team retaining their Premier League title next May.
If they continue to score at this astonishing rate — three per game in the league — they will comfortably surpass last season’s total of 106 goals.
This was never a contest, though. It is becoming the norm as teams arrive at the Etihad with fear in their eyes and that is a shame.
The visitors have to accept some of the blame for this mismatch. City were excellent partly because they so badly wanted to be but also because lame, tame Southampton allowed them to be.
With that in mind, maybe it was the fourth City goal, arriving just before half-time, that summed things up most accurately.
First, Sergio Aguero — 150 Premier League goals and counting after this game — showed more desire than Cedric Soares to steal the ball from him at the byline. Then, when Aguero’s low cross to Raheem Sterling was miskicked, Southampton defender and captain Ryan Bertrand had a clear chance to tackle.
But Bertrand had inexplicably turned his back on the ball, just as Cedric had done when David Silva had lashed in the third goal almost half an hour earlier. It’s an inexcusable footballing sin but Southampton seemed happy to commit it. Sterling scored with far more comfort than he should ever be allowed and Southampton were left embarrassed, not for the first or the last time.
It will be a surprise if Guardiola’s team don’t succesfully defend their title. Liverpool have started impressively and have improved. But City — 25 points ahead of Liverpool last time round — have improved too.
City’s squad is now so deep it can absorb the loss of a player like Kevin De Bruyne. It sounds strange, but they did not miss the Belgian here. Sterling was the game’s best player with Aguero not far behind.
The whole thing was embarrassing for Mark Hughes and not just because he used to work at City. This kind of defensive display would upset any manager.
City’s first-half goals were far too easy. The first was created by an astute pass from David Silva inside
Cedric and when Leroy Sane crossed low, Wesley Hoedt drove the ball high into his own net under pressure from a clutch of blue shirts.
There was not too much blame to attach for that one. Things like that can happen against the best teams.
But it soon became clear that Southampton did not have the appetite or the wherewithal to defend properly and if you give off a sense of weakness or vulnerability against City they will tear you apart.
Sterling eased into the penalty area with intent in the 12th minute and, after awaiting challenges that didn’t come, he squared to Aguero, who scored from close in.
Cedric then turned his back on David Silva six minutes later when a cross ballooned off Sane’s head and dropped to the Spaniard at the far post. Maybe the Portuguese defender hoped that Silva didn’t have the skill to strike a dropping ball so purely and accurately. Maybe he just didn’t fancy a ball in the face.
Whatever the case, Silva drove high into the goal and with 18 minutes gone the game was effectively over. Poor goalkeeping from Ederson gave Southampton a penalty on the halfhour, which Ings won and converted. It was the first goal City had conceded in the league since September 1, and it came right out of the blue.
City were irritated but no more and by half-time it was four, a scoreline that didn’t flatter them one bit.
It was clear there would be more goals for City if they wanted them, and they clearly did. There is an impressive appetite about them and you could see it in every touch, every tackle and every sprint off the ball.
Ederson made two decent saves, both from Ings, but then Sane hit a post with a curling left-foot shot. Then Sterling finished off a lovely team goal in the 67th minute, taking Aguero’s perfect pass in his stride to drive a low shot in at the near post.
Sterling then rolled a pass into Sane’s path in the very last minute and with a swish of the German’s left foot the walkover was complete. Sterling has now been involved in 40 Premier League goals since the start of last season, a total comprising 24 goals of his own and 16 assists.
He will have afternoons where he has to work harder than this.