Stoke City 0-2 Manchester City, Premier League: Match Report

Manchester City are now just two wins away from clinching the Premier League title at home against Manchester United, and the latest triumph was a 2-0 victory away from home against Stoke City on cold, rainy night. The Blues were dominant for 90 minutes and had a very easy night against the Potters, and the title is now more than just a certainty: it’s pretty much scientific fact.

FIRST HALF

City had a fantastic start to the game, playing with intensity, great passing and even better movement, and that’s how they got an early goal: after a wonderful passing sequence, Gabriel Jesus found Raheem Sterling alone on the wing and the Englishman played a perfect cross into the box that was met by David Silva with a beautiful finish past Jack Butland.

Stoke are fighting relegation and needed to try to get something from this game, and they naturally went forward looking for an equalizer. Badou Ndiaye went just wide on a good effort from distance, but that was about it from the Potters. Stoke did manage to stay organized without the ball and trouble City’s passing, and the final 20 minutes of the half were uneventful.

At halftime, City were well on top and with the lead, but Pep Guardiola surely wanted a second to guarantee the win.

SECOND HALF

Ask and you shall receive, Pep: just five minutes into the second half the Blues pressed high up the pitch and recovered a ball that was quickly passed into the edge of the box; Gabriel Jesus then made a beautiful assist over the top to David Silva who got to the ball before Butland and scored the second for City.

Such a quick goal completely deflated the Stoke players and the crowd at the bet365 Stadium, and even though the Blues tried to score a third immediately after the second, they eventually dropped their intensity and were content with just passing the ball around until the final whistle.

The final whistle came, and that’s now 26 wins and 81 points after 30 matches for Pep Guardiola’s Blues, the best record in Premier League history at this stage of the season. Wins away to Everton and Manchester United are enough to give City the title in a month’s time. Too bad we have to wait so long.

Man City: Ederson; Walker, Kompany, Otamendi, Zinchenko; De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Silva; Sterling (Bernardo), Jesus (Gundogan), Sané

Goals: David Silva (10’, 50’)

Stoke: Butland; Bauer, Zouma, Martins Indi, Stafylidis; Allen, Cameron (Sobhi), N’Diaye; Shaqiri, Jesé (Crouch), Choupo-Moting

Goals: None