Manchester City gave Liverpool the respect of an honor guard when the two teams entered the field, but from then on the subtleties were over as Tottenham’s hopes for European football struck a hammer after a controversial call from VAR.
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CITY THUMP LIVERPOOL
Manchester City reacted with all its might to be dethroned from Liverpool as Premier League champions to beat the Reds 4-0 on Thursday.
City warned of its intentions to regain the title next season when Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden scored all goals before the break, only to lose to Liverpool’s third division in 71 games.
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s own goal rounded off a miserable night for Jürgen Klopp’s men, who were able to concede much more in the second half.
The gap at the top of the table between the two remains 20 points, but Liverpool’s accusation of improving a series of records City had set two seasons was stalled on a chastising night for the champions.
City started the evening by giving their opponents an honor guard in their first game since the end of a 30-year wait to win the league.
The first signs indicated that Liverpool would be able to ward off a leaky city defense that cost them the title.
Mohamed Salah hit the post and Sadio Mane went lavishly wide as the chances for visitors came and went.
Firecrackers were then fired in front of the stadium, reportedly celebrating the Liverpool fans, but City soon hit the field with three goals in 20 minutes.
Despite Liverpool’s dominance as a team, De Bruyne was the standout personality of the season for many, and the Belgian began to shape his influence on the game as visitors struggled to control his midfield movement.
De Bruyne’s 13th goal of the season came from the penalty spot after 25 minutes after Joe Gomez Sterling pulled down.
Sterling was suspended by England coach Gareth Southgate after competing internationally against Gomez in the canteen the day after Liverpool’s 3-1 victory over City in Anfield earlier in the season.
The City striker spoke wisely this time when he first met his old team in a competitive game by spinning at Gomez and shooting a shot through the defender’s legs when Liverpool was caught in a counter attack.
Foden has been very impressive since the Premier League restart after a three-month layoff, and Pep Guardiola’s decision to deploy the 20-year-old ahead of Riyad Mahrez and Bernardo Silva was fully deserved, as he and De Bruyne had worked wonderfully together just a third time before had the break.
There was a hint of luck when City’s fourth arrived when De Bruyne again slashed Liverpool’s defense.
Sterling cut into it, but his shot went far before Oxlade-Chamberlain transformed it into his own network.
Mahrez had a fifth stop in stoppage time, which was ruled out by a VAR check for handball, as City could not achieve the 5-0 record they had inflicted on Liverpool at the 2017 Etihad.
Jürgen Klopp’s team won the Premier League title last week. After defending City defeat at Chelsea, there were seven games left in the season.
The Reds could break a number of Premier League records by the end of the season, including the highest 100 points City has ever scored in the 2017/18 season.
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TOTTENHAM DAMPING ACCORDING TO SHEFFIELD-DEFEAT
Sheffield United damaged Tottenham’s bid to qualify for the Champions League and sparked his own European ambitions after surviving a VAR controversy in Thursday’s 3-1 win.
Chris Wilder’s team took the lead through Sander Berge in the first half at Bramall Lane.
But Tottenham was denied compensation when VAR’s Harry Kane goal was blocked for a dubious handball against Lucas Moura.
Lucas seemed to have kicked the ball in the lead up to Kane’s hit, and Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho complained furiously about the sideline.
Sky Sports expert Jamie Redknapp described it as “one of the worst decisions I’ve ever seen”.
“I understand the letter of the law, but we have to show common sense. If you are fouled, you must put your arms down. It was random – he didn’t mean it that way.
“It’s a terrible decision. He got it completely wrong – and that ruins football, things like that. Incredible.”
Lys Mousset and Oli McBurnie rubbed Mourinho Salt in the wounds when they both arrived for United after the break.
Kane’s last minute goal was no consolation for Tottenham, who is now in great danger of missing the next season’s Champions League.
They are nine points behind fourth-placed Chelsea and seven points behind fifth-placed Manchester United after their first loss since the restart.
The Blades, who won five games after the break for the first time, advanced to seventh place two points above Tottenham and maintained their hopes of qualifying for European action.
Kane missed the goal with a pass from Steven Bergwijn and Tottenham was penalized when Berge gave the blades the lead in the 31st minute.
After Berge had spread the ball wide to Chris Basham, he broke into the Tottenham area, collected the back pass and drilled his low shot into the far corner.
Tottenham believed they had equalized two minutes later when Lucas sprinted forward and despite a fall managed to throw the ball at Kane, who cut inside and shot home.
Kane’s celebrations were curtailed when VAR banned the goal for a Moura handball that kicked the ball against his arm when it fell under pressure from several United players.
Mourinho was disgusted by what appeared to be an extremely tough decision and his mood did not improve when United midfielder Oli Norwood, who had already booked, escaped a red card because he had elbowed Son Heung-min.
Ben Osborn started in the Premier League for the first time and United’s midfielder played a key role when he scored again in the 69th minute.
Osborn’s nifty pass, which broke into the area, hit Enda Stevens and he campaigned for the unmarked Mousset to shoot home from close range for his first goal since December.
McBurnie doubted the result when he struck Tottenham’s Berge’s cross in the 84th minute after a sloppy defense by Tottenham.
Kane had struck against 28 of the 29 teams he had played in in the Premier League, with United being the only ones keeping him at bay.
He hit the mark with a simple finish from Son’s Pass, but his 199th career club goal was far too late to avoid a painful defeat.
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