Man City 4-1 West Ham: Pep Guardiola breaks Premier League record - but Citizens are "absolutely not" back to their best

Pep Guardiola has acceptable a caller Premier League managerial grounds aft his Manchester City broadside battled to a 4-1 win implicit West Ham United astatine the Etihad Stadium connected Saturday.

The Citizens were by acold from perfect, but they managed to get the amended of the Hammers arsenic they welcomed successful 2025 successful winning fashion, securing back-to-back victories for the archetypal clip successful 70 days aft beating Leicester City 2-0 past clip out.

Erling Haaland netted either broadside of fractional clip and became the 3rd highest Premier League scorer astatine the Etihad Stadium successful the process, extending his extremity tally to 46 wide - lone down Sergio Aguero (106) and Raheem Sterling (51).

The Norwegian was acceptable up for some of his goals by Man of the Match Savinho, who had earlier helped Man City unfastened the scoring successful the 10th-minute erstwhile his transverse deflected disconnected Vladimir Coufal and near Alphonse Areola stranded.

Phil Foden tapped location a 4th for Man City connected the 66-minute people aft being assisted by the unselfish Kevin De Bruyne connected his 400th quality for the hosts, earlier Niclas Fullkrug's onslaught 5 minutes aboriginal proved to beryllium nary much than a consolation for West Ham.

© Imago

Guardiola sets caller PL grounds aft beating West Ham

Victory for sixth-placed Man City - conscionable their 3rd successful 15 games crossed each competitions - has seen past determination to wrong 2 points of fourth-placed Chelsea, who were held to a 1-1 gully astatine Crystal Palace, portion the Citizens besides prevented seventh-placed Bournemouth - who beat Everton 1-0 - from leapfrogging them in the table.

Guardiola's latest triumph has besides seen the Catalan acceptable a caller Premier League record, arsenic helium has go the archetypal manager successful the division's past to spell 18 games without decision against the aforesaid opponent, winning 16 times and drafting doubly against West Ham.

While galore volition reason that a fig of positives tin beryllium taken from City's occurrence implicit the Hammers, Guardiola insisted aft the lucifer that his squad "didn't play good" against Julen Lopetegui's men.

Asked if the aged Man City are connected their mode back, Guardiola told reporters: "You justice results... We saw implicit 8 oregon 9 years our level, and we are not astatine our level. We won, we're truthful blessed - it'll assistance us... You justice results, but our show was not good!"

He added: "Our crippled is inactive not with composure. We accelerate everything, but astatine the aforesaid clip we struggled a batch with results lately. The past 2 victories and successful the past 3 games we didn't lose, truthful it's good.

© Imago

Guardiola urges Man City players to debar "big mistake"

"We were fortunate with the archetypal goal. [West Ham] were amended successful the archetypal minutes, they could've gone 0-1, 0-2, we were fortunate and needed composure. But the 2nd extremity helped, an incredible, fantastic 2nd goal, but inactive we are not similar we were.

"Normally erstwhile you are galore years here, the players deliberation that they merit thing peculiar with what they person done, and that is simply a large mistake - a large mistake! They person to beryllium it again, and again, and again, and again.

"Against Everton, we played much, overmuch amended than contiguous and we gully (1-1 connected Boxing Day). 'Oh large crisis, disaster'... Of people [today] determination are an unthinkable batch of positives, but if you inquire maine if the squad is playing similar we played for the past years, no! Absolutely not!"

Guardiola was impressed with the show of Savinho, though, telling BBC Match of the Day: "He was brilliant. He is 1 of the fewer that is fresh. There were glimpses of brilliance. I'm really, truly blessed for the enactment ethic - it's unbelievable for each of us."

Man City volition present crook their attraction to the 3rd circular of the FA Cup and volition invited League Two outfit Salford City to the Etihad Stadium adjacent weekend.

ID:562115:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:collect6816:

No Data Analysis info