CROWN PRINCES MARCH ON
Champions roar clear at top as Foden sinks Bees
CITY were invited to Phil their boots as their title rivals faltered and they duly obliged.
Liverpool’s defeat at Leicester on Tuesday and Chelsea’s last-gasp concession of a leveller to Brighton last night handed City the chance to roar eight points clear at the top of the pile.
It was an opportunity Pep Guardiola’s men were never going to spurn, even against a spirited Bees side.
Phil Foden buried a sumptuous delivery from Kevin De Bruyne in the 16th minute to subdue the Brentford crowd and their pumped-up team.
The obligatory VAR check for offside followed but the goal stood. From then, it was a case of City managing the game and while Brentford huffed and puffed, they just couldn’t bring the house down.
Foden said: “I have had a few this year that have been ruled offside so I wasn’t too confident.
“I thought I went a bit too early, but thank God the goal counted.
“I am really happy. There were a few when I went a bit early and was offside. We could have won by more. We kept working hard.
“Round Christmas you have to keep your foot on the gas and keep focused. This team is doing that.”
Foden’s strike had come just moments after Brentford came close to scoring but Ederson reacted well to keep out a cross that bounced towards the City goal off Ruben Dias, before Yoane Wissa’s deflected strike was cleared off the line.
City were looking to equal the club’s top-flight record of scoring at least four goals in four successive games set in 1905 but they rarely carved open a hard-working Bees side. Ivan Toney was fortunate to go unpunished for catching
Fernandinho with his studs as the City midfielder lay on the ground just before half-time.
City went close to doubling their lead soon after the break when De Bruyne and Foden again linked up, with the latter heading his team-mate’s cross just wide of the post.
De Bruyne struck the base of the upright with a fierce low drive from distance, while Aymeric Laporte had a header ruled out for a marginal offside, but in the end Foden’s first-half strike was enough as Manchester City ended a year top of the Premier League table for the third time.
The previous two occasions they rounded off December in this position - in 2011-12 and 2017-18 - they went on to win the title. Guardiola refused to get carried away by his side’s lead at the top of the table.
He said: “There are 54 points to play for, 54.
“But Phil was exceptional. With Phil, he’s already a football player.
“We don’t have any doubts about his quality. We knew it. Since he came to play with us, always he’s been exceptional!
“Kevin [De Bruyne] was also exceptional again.”
Brentford boss Thomas Frank hailed his battling underdogs.
He said: “In the first half, we were unbelievable.
“We gave one chance away against Man City. We have the lowest budget, they have the richest budget, the best players, the best manager.”