Man City 3-2 Fulham: Kovacic brace earns victory for the Cityzens
Man City 3-2 Fulham: Kovacic brace earns victory for the Cityzens. It was Mateo Kovacic‘s brace that helped Manchester City keep up to pace at the top of the Premier League in a nervy 3-2 win over Fulham at the Etihad Stadium.
The Cottagers looked sharp and went ahead through Andreas Pereira, but it was Kovacic who struck either side of half-time, to turn the game on its head.
Rodrigo Muniz set up an anxious finish after Jeremy Doku had added a third for the hosts, but City eventually got over the line to stay a point behind leaders Liverpool going into the October international break.
How the game unfolded;
Following their win in the Champions League at Slovan Bratislava, City took to the Etihad turf knowing a victory was required to stay within touching distance of Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table after the Reds won at Crystal Palace.
Pep Guardiola‘s side settled into a nice early rhythm, with both Ilkay Gundogan and Erling Haaland shooting wide of Bernd Leno‘s goal.
However, while Fulham accepted their role as defensive underdogs, they still showed their attacking teeth in the final third. Adama Traore‘s pace proved too much for Rico Lewis as he latched onto a counter-attack, but Ederson quickly closed down the angle and denied the former Wolves flier.
Gundogan netted his first City goal since returning from Barcelona in midweek but appeared to have left his shooting boots at home on Saturday, passing up another chance as his late run into the box saw him head Bernardo Silva‘s cross wide. Shortly after that spurned opportunity, Fulham struck.
A beautiful team move from the Cottagers saw Alex Iwobi fire into Raul Jimenez, whose lofted back-heel fell perfectly evaded Manuel Akanji and straight to Pereira. The former Manchester United midfielder tapped in from close range, though his side’s lead didn’t last for long.
City’s pressure remained consistent and eventually they grabbed the equaliser. A corner wasn’t effectively cleared and fell to Kovacic, whose deflected effort sailed beyond the helpless Leno and into the net.
The hosts may have headed into half-time in the lead had Silva’s header snuck into the far corner, but a fast start to the second 45 minutes ensured the miss wasn’t a costly one.
It was Kovacic who bagged his second, waltzing onto Silva’s pass and whipping a shot across Leno and into the far corner from the edge of the penalty area.
After substitutions for both sides, there was a collector’s item as replacement Kyle Walker was done for speed by Traore. However, a familiar problem cost the winger again as his finish failed to find a way past Ederson.
Substitute Doku seemed to have put the gloss on a City victory when he cut in and smashed home his side’s third, but an 88th-minute strike from Muniz brought the score back to 3-2 for a nervy period of stoppage time.
However, City held on to secure the victory, leaving Fulham to regret the chances they passed up at the Etihad.
