Sunderland defeated, Man City 'breathes down' Arsenal's neck

Football results - The straightforward victory over Sunderland in the 15th round allowed Man City to reduce the points difference with Arsenal in the Premier League table.

The first half of the match between Man City and Sunderland was dominated entirely by the home team. From the early minutes, Man City pushed their line up and applied constant pressure. In the 11th minute, Bernardo Silva had a notable long-range shot from the edge of the box, but the ball flew just over the crossbar. Sunderland responded at the 17th minute when Enzo Le Fee tried his luck from distance, but his shot narrowly missed the post.

After numerous intense battles for possession, the opening goal finally arrived in the 31st minute. Ruben Dias controlled the ball neatly at the edge of the box and unleashed a curling shot into the top corner, putting Man City ahead. Just four minutes later, from a corner kick, Josko Gvardiol rose high and headed accurately to double the home side’s lead.

The remaining minutes of the first half saw Man City continue to dominate with several dangerous attacks, while Sunderland mostly focused on defense.

In the second half, Sunderland pushed forward early, but attacks from Enzo Le Fee and Bertrand Traore were quickly thwarted by Man City's defense. In the 51st minute, Nico O’Reilly tried a long shot, but it went wide of the post. The visitors then had a very close chance in the 55th minute when Granit Xhaka’s close-range shot hit the post, causing a gasp from the crowd.

The turning point of the half came in the 65th minute, when Phil Foden charged in to powerfully head in a precise cross from Rayan Cherki, extending Man City's lead.

Following the goal, Pep Guardiola made several substitutions to refresh the squad, notably taking off Haaland, Foden, Gvardiol, and Bernardo Silva.

Despite Sunderland's efforts, they remained ineffective in front of goal. Their best chance came in the 80th minute when Romaine Mundle shot just over the bar. The match gradually concluded with Man City fully controlling the tempo and maintaining their lead through the second half.

In the end, Man City secured a 3-0 victory over Sunderland. This result lifted Man City to second place in the standings with 31 points, just two points behind league leaders Arsenal.

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