Man City make an instant statement
Pep Guardiola was eager to discover how Manchester City would react to seeing their long winning run in the English Premier League come to an end.
A goal after 38 seconds - the quickest of the season - and a convincing 3-1 win over Watford yesterday was an emphatic response.
City ended their gruelling, fourmatch festive programme with a
15-point lead after 22 games and are showing no sign of wobbling as they close in on a first league title under Guardiola.
Monday’s 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace, which ended City’s record
18-match winning run, tested the character of Guardiola’s side. But the visit of out-of-form Watford to Etihad Stadium offered the perfect chance to bounce back.
Raheem Sterling gave City lead
inside a minute before Christian Kabasele’s own goal and a closerange finish from Sergio Aguero put City 3-1 up. Andre Gray grabbed an 82nd-minute consolation goal.
In other matches, Andy Carroll scored in the fourth minute of stoppage time as West Ham fought back to win 2-1 against West
Bromwich Albion, whose winless run stretched to 20 games.
Carroll had already equalised, cancelling out West Brom’s opener by James McClean, when he slid in to fire home Marko Arnautovic’s low cross.
West Ham moved a point above the relegation zone and five points above West Brom. Only three clubs have endured longer runs without a victory in the Premier League than West Brom: Derby (32), Sunderland (26) and Norwich (21).
Fernando Llorente’s first start for Tottenham came against his former club, Swansea. Almost inevitably, he scored.
The Spanish striker headed in the opening goal in Spurs’ 2-0 win that lifted them to fifth place, four points off fourth-place Liverpool with a game in hand. Dele Alli added the second in the 89th minute at Liberty Stadium.
Without a point or a goal after seven games, Crystal Palace are in sight of mid-table in the Premier League after a 2-1 win at Southampton.
Palace came from behind at St Mary’s Stadium, bouncing back from Shane Long’s first goal in 11 months with strikes by James McArthur and Luka Milivojevic.