STERLING STAYING
The Spain Under-21 midfielder struck either side of half-time to set up a quarter-final trip to Leicester or Southampton for Pep Guardiola’s men.
A fifth straight defeat kept the heat on underpressure Fulham boss Slavisa Jokanovic, although few expected them to win against a strong City line-up.
The hosts’ supposed second string was still formidable and included Vincent Kompany, John Stones, Kevin De Bruyne and Leroy Sane, and their substitutes alone worth £276million.
Diaz grabbed the goals, but the stand-out performer was De Bruyne, who, after a twomonth injury lay-off, is getting back to peak form and fitness at just the right time.
Whether that progress was halted last night when he was forced off late in the game with knee trouble (below) following a tussle with Timothy Fosu-mensah was unclear.
Manchester United visit the Etihad on November 11, and City will be hoping that the Belgium international’s problem proves to be a minor one.
The Carabao Cup may be the trophy lowest on his priority list, but ahead of the game Guardiola warned before the game his team would “not surrender the title lightly”.
Predictably, City dominated possession from the start, Fulham rarely managing to emerge from their own half, forced into a sustained policy of containment from kick-off.
Phil RAHEEM STERLING has verbally agreed a five-year deal with Manchester City, making him one of their highest-paid players.
After months of negotiations, the England star and his representatives have finalised fresh terms with City – believed to be worth £275,000 a week – with the contract expected to be signed within the Foden drew a decent save from Rico in the 14th minute, while Fuham’s only attempt at the other end was a tame effort from Luciano Vietto, straight at keeper Aro Muric.
It became a question of when, not if, City would score and in the 18th minute they did, Diaz’s shot deflecting off Aleksandar Mitrovic and spinning into the net.
The 19-year-old is wanted by Real Madrid and could leave for free next summer when his contract ends, following Jadon Sancho, who has thrived since quitting the Blues for Borussia Dortmund.
But if Diaz maintains this form, albeit with limited first-team opportunities, City could well come to regret it should the youngster be Arsenal Tottenham Leicester/southampton Man City Middlesbrough Burton Albion Chelsea Bournemouth to be played week of December 17
allowed to depart as a free agent.
City should have made it 2-0 in the 34th minute after superb skill from De Bruyne, who slalomed past several opponents before feeding the ball to Foden. The England Under-17 World Cup winner set up Sane, who was unable to provide the finish the move deserved, firing high and wide.
Jesus sent a simple header wide just after the restart, with City finding it a struggle to add to their lead, although against Fulham’s brittle defence another goal was inevitable.
It came in the 65th minute, Diaz dispatching the ball into the roof of the net after a shot from Jesus came back off a post and fell invitingly. coming days. Sterling, 23, has emerged as one of
City’s most influential performers, with 23 goals in total last season for the record-breaking Premier League title winners.
And the forward – whose deal was due to expire in 2020 – has made an equally impressive start to this term, with four goals and three assists to his name already for Pep Guardiola’s side.
All the latest news ahead of the Premier League return tomorrow
Unai Emery and Jurgen Klopp talking ahead of Arsenal v Liverpool
The best selections for today’s meetings, courtesy of top tipster Newsboy