Manchester City extend Premier League race with 3-0 win over Crystal Palace
Manchester, May 14
Manchester City continued their Premier League title race for another week, securing a 3-0 win over Crystal Palace on Wednesday night.
With this win, Manchester City has closed the gap further with table toppers Arsenal, with 77 points to their name as compared to The Gunners' 79 points. Both sides have two more matches to go, and the next week could determine who gets the silverware.
If Mikel Arteta's side manages to win their remaining two games and they stay perfect till May 24, City will not be able to catch up with Arsenal's tally even if they win both their matches. The Pep Guardiola-managed side would be praying that their rivals fumble somewhere in their final two fixtures against Burnley and Crystal Palace.
Antoine Semenyo opened the goal tally for City in the 32nd minute, courtesy of an assist from Phil Foden, who produced a genius flick which found Semenyo, and the strike delivered a neat finish into the bottom corner of the goal.
Eight minutes later, it was Omar Marmoush who got another assist from Foden, as he latched onto a cross that Foden touched into his path, before swivelling and cleverly beating Dean Henderson to produce a fine finish.
After the second half, both teams made changes, aiming to manage the workload of key players ahead of marquee clashes with City set to play Chelsea in the FA Cup final in three days, and Palace will be playing in the UEFA Conference League final at the end of the month.
In the 84th minute, it was Rayan Cherki who gave a pass to Savinho, and he scored a late third goal.
Following the match, Guardiola expressed his happiness with Foden's performance, saying, as quoted by Sky Sports, "These types of games against a low block, they defend so well, you need quality, spark, talent. Something that is not in the tactical board, not in the meeting, not in the training."
"Phil receives the ball in small spaces and creates something. The good players deliver; I am pleased for him."
"This is a position he is not used to, as a holding midfielder. But I saw in the last game against Brentford that he was outstanding. He helped in that position. And then close the box, Phil is completely unique," he signed off.
— ANI
Reader Comments
City's depth is incredible—Semenyo, Marmoush, and Cherki all stepping up. But I'm worried about the fixture pile-up with the FA Cup final coming up. Sometimes I think the Premier League schedule is just too packed, similar to how IPL cricket sometimes feels rushed here in India.
Foden is a magician! The assist for Semenyo's goal was pure class 🤩. As someone who grew up watching Beckham and Scholes, seeing players like Foden bring that creativity back is wonderful. Hope City can do the double this season!
I'm a Chelsea fan actually, but I've got to admit—City are relentless. Guardiola's system is just next level. But I'm a bit critical of how much they spend on players; it's like the Indian Premier League auction sometimes! But credit where it's due, their football is beautiful to watch.
Great win for City, but can we talk about Foden playing as a holding midfielder? That's such a versatile role. In India, we often see players stuck in one position—need more coaching like this. Also, Savinho's late goal shows how deep this squad is. Two more games, anything can happen!
I'm so excited for the final week! Arsenal vs City could go down to the wire 😊. But I do feel for Palace—they're fighting for Conference League and got thumped here. Still, great to see English football producing such drama, similar to how we get excited about IPL playoffs here in India. Come on City!
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