Clarets fail to get their teeth into City NEIL
IN YEARS gone by, Pep Guardiola had compared a trip to Burnley with visiting the dentist.
Every team knows it’s going to hurt – but it has to be done. However, there was no need for any numbing agent at the pain administered by Dr Sean Dyche yesterday.
This was just a superficial examination that Manchester City breezed through with a clean bill of health.
One goal ahead after five minutes, twoup before the half-hour was out and then an extended game of keep-ball as the Clarets sweated in the spring sun.
Liverpool supporters will be eager to see if there were any signs of crumbling confidence – any potential cracks in the sky blue ranks ahead of next Sunday’s mouthwatering showdown at the Etihad.
In short, no, there weren’t.
Jurgen Klopp’s side may have thrown down the gauntlet at
Anfield but City boss Guardiola picked (right) it up and slapped both the Clarets and his managerial rivals around the face with it. Perhaps it should come as no surprise that there was no repeat of the glut of chances that went begging at Crystal Palace in a
0-0 draw three weeks ago.
That turned up the heat a notch. But instead of wilting, City donned their sunglasses and enjoyed themselves.
If they were feeling any pressure at seeing a 14-point lead whittled away, they weren’t showing it.
The sight of Liverpool on top of the pile for the first time since September did not fill the Catalan’s Class of ’22 with dread.
Why should it? Manchester City came off a fiendishly long run three years ago when they won a game of cat and mouse with the Reds that lasted three months.
There were split kick-off times back then. It didn’t matter. The game of oneupmanship lasted until the final day in one of the greatest title races in modern history.
City did not drop one point between the
BIG MATCH VERDICT
end of January and the end of the season. Liverpool the same from the start of
March. So the fact they are in the same positions has rekindled memories of that titantic battle. But there was no iceberg in east Lancashire – it was difficult to escape the conclusion that Dyche had more of an eye on Wednesday’s date of destiny against Everton.
Burnley were too compliant, too eager to funnel back into their shape as City passed the ball about in front of them. You can bet your bottom dollar there won’t be a repeat against the Toffees.
As for City, this was the perfect opportunity to get back into the old routine following the international break. For them, Atletico Madrid has to be the focus in the Champions League this midweek – as it does for the Reds against Benfica. But there can be little doubt that the eyes of the footballing world will already be fixed firmly on the Etihad.
Even on a weekend of the Grand
National, the Melbourne Grand Prix and the Masters, the meeting of the Premier League’s two frontrunners tops the bill.
Three years ago, they didn’t face one another during the run-in. And even allowing for the winning streaks both produced it was a meeting between them at the Etihad in January which went a long way towards City winning the race.
This time, the margin for error is way smaller. The remaining fixtures are fewer.
And the world of football is licking its lips at what’s to come.