CITY FIND MOJO AS THEY STROLL TOWARDS DERBY DAY
NO PRIZES for guessing who has the easier run-up to the Manchester derby at Old Trafford on Saturday. For Pep Guardiola, this cakewalk against Fulham and a dead rubber at home to Marseille in the Champions League on Wednesday. For Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, a taxing comeback victory at West Ham and a do-or-die group decider in Leipzig tomorrow night. The only thing not in Guardiola’s favour is that Manchester City go into the 183rd derby with 24 hours’ less recovery time, but that will matter little if he makes wholesale changes against Marseille. The Spaniard could not have wished for better preparation before taking on Solskjaer, who has won three of the last four meetings between the two. Victory over Fulham was so comfortable that Guardiola — a staunch advocate of using five substitutes this season — became the first City manager since Stuart Pearce more than 15 years ago not to use one in a League match. Guardiola’s 700th game as a coach was done and dusted inside 26 minutes. Kevin De Bruyne set up Raheem Sterling for the first goal, then converted a penalty after Sterling went down under Joachim Andersen’s challenge. Job done. It could easily have been a repeat of
City’s 5-0 win over Burnley a week earlier as they recorded back-toback League wins for the first time this season. Fulham tend not to cause them too much trouble — City have won their last 10 games against the Londoners by an aggregate score of 29-3 — but it is clear that Guardiola’s side are coming into form after a difficult start to the season. The goals are flowing again and, more importantly to the manager, they have stopped going in at the other end. This was City’s fourth straight clean sheet. The closest Ederson came to being beaten was a backpass from John Stones. ‘We are in a good moment,’ said Guardiola. ‘It’s important we won and that defenders didn’t make mistakes and gift goals. We struggled at the beginning of the season for many reasons. Now four games, four clean sheets. It’s so important for us to maintain this solidity.’ Guardiola name-checked Ruben Dias, Eric Garcia, Benjamin Mendy and Joao Cancelo for their contributions in recent weeks, but Aymeric Laporte continues to be a notable absentee. Once indispensable, the Frenchman has not featured since City’s defeat by Tottenham five games ago. Dias is the main man now, with a resurgent Stones alongside him. ‘We’re all fighting for our places,’ said Stones. ‘When you get a chance you have to take it. On a personal note, I’m made up.’ Credit to Fulham for giving it a go in the second half. It doesn’t get any easier for Scott Parker’s side, with Liverpool next up on Sunday.
‘This is not a low for us,’ said Parker. ‘A team that lacks belief, that lacks a real assertiveness, that’s a dead team. We’ll never lack belief.’ MANCHESTER CITY (4-2-3-1): Ederson 6; Cancelo 7.5, Stones 6.5, Dias 6.5, Mendy 6; Rodri 6, Gundogan 7; Mahrez 7, DE BRUYNE 8, Sterling 7.5; Jesus 5.5. Subs not used: Steffen, Laporte, Bernardo, Torres, Fernandinho, Foden, Garcia. Scorers: Sterling 5, De Bruyne 26 (pen). Manager: Pep Guardiola 7 FULHAM (5-2-3): Areola 7;; Decordova-Reid 6 (Kamara 72min, 6), Aina 6,, Andersen 5, Adarabioyo 7, Robinson 5. 5; Anguissa 6, Reed 6.5 (Lemina 68, 6); Lookman 6, Loftus-Cheek 6.5 (Cairney83), Cavaleiro 6.5. Subs not use ed: Rodak, Mitrovic, Ream, Bryan. Manager: Scott Parker 6. Referee: Jonathan Moss 6.
Clinical: Sterling fires City into the lead