FULL REPORT AND PICTURES
Sterling shows again he’s an expert at dealing with adversity as he comes off bench to settle City’s nerves
TWENTY-FIVE minutes from the end, Manchester City were 2-0 up and cruising towards victory when Dominic Calvert-Lewin rose above Fabian Delph and steered a header past Ederson.
Everton were back in the game and the atmosphere at the Etihad was suddenly tense and nervous.
So Pep Guardiola did what much of the country has been doing for the past seven days; he turned to Raheem Sterling. Sterling has become something of an expert at stepping up and dealing with adversity, after all. He was the obvious choice.
Guardiola brought him off the bench straight after Everton’s goal. He had only been on the pitch for two minutes and 55 seconds when Fernandinho burst down the left and pulled a cross back to him.
Sterling headed it unerringly past Jordan Pickford. It was his first touch. It put the game out of Everton’s reach and reminded everyone why Sterling remains one of the jewels in the crown of this outstanding City side.
Kevin de Bruyne returned from injury to play the last 15 minutes and misfiring forward Gabriel Jesus scored twice but Sterling is a student of newspaper headlines and, once again, they belonged to him.
‘I see him so calm,’ Guardiola said when he was asked about how Sterling has dealt with the attention centred on him after he was abused by Chelsea fans last Saturday and then responded to it with an Ins tag ram post that focused attention on the media.
‘He has handled many situations in the last few years and I admire him. He is happy playing football.’
The win took City back to the top of the Premier League at least until Liverpool face Manchester United today and put City back on track after their shock defeat by Chelsea last Saturday.
With De Bruyne back after injuries to both knees and Sergio Aguero ready to return, too, there is a sense that City will be back at full throttle as they head into the holiday period. Everton caused them some uncomfortable moments and would have t ested City’s recovering confidence after their loss at Stamford Bridge more thoroughly if they had been able to take several chances that came their way. But they spurned all but one of those chances and City were ruthless in grasping theirs.
City, as so often, were equally impressive without the ball as they were in possession. Everton found i t almost i mpossible to string together more than a couple of passes before they were harried out of their rhythm by City’s relentless pressing.
For all City’s possession, it was Everton who fashioned the first clear chance of the afternoon after quarter of an hour. Lucas Digne, Everton’s clever left-back, turned Kyle Walker inside out near the byline and drifted a cross to the back post where Richarlison was hurtling in, unmarked.
The Brazil forward met it on the volley at full tilt but he could not keep it down and lifted his attempt high over the bar. Richarlison held his head in his hands. Chances like that do not come along very often against Guardiola’s team.
Everton rued their profligacy immediately. They were grateful to Pickford for a fine save to keep out Michael Keane’s inadvertent prod towards his own goal after 20 minutes but it was only a brief pardon. When City are vulnerable, you have to punish them as Chelsea did. If you do not, you pay for it.
Midway through the half, Ilkay
Gundogan controlled an aimless clearance from YerryM in a beautifully and played the ball to Leroy Sane. Sane slipped the ball to Jesus and he ran in on goal and drilled the ball under Pickford. It ended a run of 11 games without a league goal for the Brazilian.
The goal disheartened Everton and City toyed with them for the rest of the half.
Jesus had the ball in the net again but this time it was disallowed for offside, Pickford did well to beat out a fierce drive from Riyad Mahrez and the visitors had to repel one attack after another.
Five minutes after half- time, Everton yielded again.
City probed and probed at their defence on its left hand side. Walker was repelled a couple of times by Digne but, when another cross was headed out, it was worked to Sane on the other side of the area.
Sane controlled the ball, looked up and curled an inch-perfect cross over Keane and on to the head of Jesus, who had stolen ahead of Mina. Jesus met it perfectly and his bullet header bulged the back of the net before Pickford had a chance to react.
Midway through the half, though, Everton pulled one back against the run of play. They worked the ball neatly down the left and forced City into a hasty clearance which fell to Digne. He lobbed a cross into the box and Calvert- Lewin rose highest to nod it down and beyond City goalkeeper Ederson.
Sterling had been standing on the touchline waiting to come on as the goal was scored and his introduction restored City’s two-goal advantage straight away.
Jesus and Fernandinho combined well down the left, Fernandinho pulled a cross back from the byline and Sterling guided a firm header past the wrong-footed Pickford.
The game was more open now and Everton tried to hit back. Richarlison should have done better when Ademola Lookman pulled the ball back to him but he leaned back and lifted his shot over.
Substitute Theo Walcott, too, ought to have profited from another Lookman cross but he sidefooted the ball into the ground and it bounced over the bar.
De Bruyne came on for the last 15 minutes and City saw the game out comfortably. Jesus was the man of the match but, after the last seven days, there was something inevitable about the fact that Sterling upstaged him.