Erling Haaland’s Brace Propels Manchester City to 2-0 Victory over Tottenham

The Norwegian striker opened the score for City at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the second half, tapping in a precise cross from Kevin De Bruyne. And just minutes after Son Heung-min’s incredible late penalty save by backup goalie Stefan Ortega, he scored a late goal to give the visitors the victory.

After 37 games, Pep Guardiola’s club now sits two points ahead of Arsenal at the top of the standings.
Regardless of the Gunners’ outcome against Everton, a victory over West Ham on Sunday at the Etihad will cement their place as champions for a record-breaking fourth season.
In the history of the English premier league, no side has ever won four championships in a row.

Aston Villa’s fourth-place finish in the Champions League ensures that they will play in Europe’s premier competition next season, along with City, Arsenal, and Liverpool, should Spurs lose.

“We took the opportunity for the final game,” Guardiola stated to the BBC. “The last game, which is the serve to win Wimbledon, is considered the most challenging by tennis professionals.

“That incident occurred during our time playing Aston Villa (2022). And it was Sergio Aguero who scored in 93 minutes and 20 seconds against QPR many, many years ago. Thus, the standard game will be played.”

To help City cross the finish line, Guardiola appealed to the supporters of the team. He declared, “We know what we’re playing for.” “There is stress because the opponent is so strong. We are aware of the difficulty because of this.

“Come to the stadium, everyone, and make some noise. Although these games are harder, you still have to play them. After two days of preparation and one day off, we’ll try our hardest.

Before the match in north London, there was a heated argument among home supporters about whether they wanted their side to lose so that City would be in the lead and Arsenal would be their closest rivals. “Stand up if you hate Arsenal” was a chant heard across the stadium in the first few minutes as Spurs fans made their anger for their bitter local rivals evident.

Tottenham had the first opportunity at goal when Ederson of City turned aside a hard shot from Rodrigo Bentancur. Phil Foden’s close-range attempt was then saved by Spurs goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Spurs failed to put the finishing touches on their forward moves, while City, who had not lost in 21 league games going into the game, lacked their fluid best.
Vicario made a full-length dive shortly after the restart to block a blistering effort from De Bruyne.

But in the 51st minute, the visitors broke the tie when Bernardo Silva located De Bruyne in the box, and the Belgian crossed the ball for Haaland to score from close range.
As the City supporters rejoiced in their area, thousands of Spurs supporters screamed, “Are you watching Arsenal?”

After Pape Sarr gave De Bruyne a savage strike to the head to deny Cristian Romero, Ederson was hit in the head and substituted by Ortega, causing the game to become disjointed.
The German was instantly called upon and stopped replacement Dejan Kulusevski at close range.

With five minutes of normal time left, Son broke through, and it seemed as though time would stand still, but Ortega prevented the South Korean goal with his legs. Dropping to the ground, Guardiola clenched his head in shock.

Instead, City was given a penalty when Pedro Porro pulled down replacement Jeremy Doku. In the 91st minute, Haaland scored, bringing his season total of goals in the league to 27, and the players celebrated wildly in front of the City supporters.

The treble-winning team from last year will be ready for Sunday’s championship game knowing that they are only ninety minutes away from writing another chapter in football history.