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Two goals in the final 6 minutes of the game helped Manchester City beat Everton 2-0 on the night of March 20, and took another step on the road to winning their four-season treble.
* Score: Gundogan 84 ‘, De Bruyne 90’.
Gundogan celebrated the opening of the scoring before 6 minutes. Picture: The FA.
A month ago, also at Goodison Park, Man City defeated Everton 3-1 despite a lack of starting lineup Kevin De Bruyne. That’s why Pep Guardiola pitched a lot of substitute players in the FA Cup quarterfinals on March 20. De Bruyne, who has scored three goals in his last two appearances, is no exception.
Like last month’s showdown, De Bruyne came in with 10 minutes remaining. The difference is that this time, Man City is still 0-0, rather than creating a fixed match. However, the star quality helps De Bruyne only need four minutes to make his mark. The Belgian midfielder took the ball, broke down the middle and was blocked by defender Everton. In the middle, the home defense was waiting to see if referee Michael Oliver would throw a penalty or not, Rodri went up, finished near 11m. The ball hit the crossbar, before Ilkay Gundogan hit the head, opening the scoring.
Six minutes later, De Bruyne closed the game with a goal. The Everton player broke the ball, after Man City cut themselves in the middle of the field. De Bruyne broke the offside trap, calmly edging past the last defender, before placing his left foot in the penalty area.
Gundogan scores in the last three games. Picture: The FA.
Two quick goals marked a somewhat grim ending for Everton, especially after what they showed in the first half. With reasonable training distance and a tight playing style, the home team’s five-man defense sealed all innings to goal. Man City held the ball back more than 76%, but only once did it hit the mark.
The most dangerous opportunity before the break was from Everton. Starting from a corner, midfielder Yerry Mina turned high and headed the ball over Steffen’s goalkeeper. However, left-back Oleksandr Zinchenko came in at the right moment, clearing the ball down the line.
Everton maintained discipline in the second half. The only time the green defense hit the “Man City no De Bruyne” pass was in the 58th minute. Fernandinho fought his way down the left, before struggling for Raheem Sterling to fire a bunt. However, goalkeeper Joao Virginia flew to the max and pushed the ball.
Guardiola refused to stand still and continued to push his students to beat their wings. De Bruyne and Riyad Mahrez, two of City’s best orderlies, entered the field. This consistency helps the Etihad Stadium owner open the scoring. In the scoring situation, all five Everton defenders stretched. When De Bruyne’s break led to Rodri’s hit, all five Everton players in the middle were buried, and Gundogan continued to run through the void. When the ball went flying, the German midfielder was present just in time to score.
Everton played the goalkeeper but couldn’t stop Man City. Picture: AP
Eliminating Everton in the FA Cup quarter-finals, Man City also need 13 more victories to fulfill its four goals, including five in the Premier League, two in the FA Cup, one in the League Cup and five in the the Champions League.
The victory on the night of March 20 also brought many other positive signs for City, such as that Gundogan and De Bruyne can shine together, rather than tread like last month. Furthermore, the green half of Manchester City also proved to be more courageous when playing against goalkeeping teams. Last season, they were kicked out of the FA Cup by Arsenal and Lyon stopped in the Champions League with a five-defender diagram. But this time, Everton did not enjoy the same joy.
Team
Everton: Virginia; Holgate (Iwobi 87), Mina, Godfrey; Coleman, Andre Gomes, Allan, Sigurdsson, Digne; Calvert-Lewin, Richarlison.
City man: Steffen, Walker, Laporte, Dias, Zinchenko, Silva (Mahrez 64 ‘), Fernandinho, Gundogan (Rodri 90’), Sterling (De Bruyne 80 ‘), Jesús, Foden.
Thang nguyen
