Almost all Manchester City players performed much better as they recorded their second successive win in the Premier League by thrashing West Ham United 4-1 at the Etihad Stadium last Saturday, January 4.
The Cityzens thus moved up to the sixth position in the league table with 34 points from 20 matches.
Erling Haaland scored a brace in the match to take his season’s tally to 21 goals. Phil Foden also scored in City’s’ victory, as Pep Guardiola’s men looked in much better shape than they usually have in the recent past.
A number of Manchester City Players Came Up with Improved Performance
Aside from Haaland and Foden, Bernardo Silva also looked in much better form. Another player who showed improvement was Kevin de Bruyne. The Belgian started in the second consecutive match for the English champions and made things look more dynamic in the opposition half with his passing and movement.
However, it was Savinho, who caught the eye the most for the Cityzens. He was a constant menace for West Ham through the left flank. The winger kept cutting inside from the left side repeatedly and his shot deflected off Vladimír Coufal for the Cityzens’ first goal.
Savinho then delivered a cross for Haaland’s first goal to register a wonderful performance. He registered a second assist by playing a perfect pass to Haaland for the latter’s second goal. The young Brazilian looked in great touch and remained the primary creative outlet for Guardiola’s men.
Haaland’s return to form is also great news for the Cityzens. The 24-year-old Norwegian striker made it a point to fall back regularly to help create moves for his team.
Foden tried to take shots from outside the penalty box at times and came up with an improved performance after a sustained lean patch. The improved form of the PFA Player of the Year is a good sign for Manchester City.
Manchester City Have Key Matches Ahead Before Facing Chelsea
Manchester City will face Chelsea on January 25, which promises to be a challenging fixture for them. Prior to that, the Sky Blues will take on Brentford and Ipswich Town in the Premier League and will also play in their FA Cup and UEFA Champions League fixtures.
The gap between the Cityzens and Liverpool is more than 10 points at the moment, which means that the Reds might run away with the league title unless they have a major slump in form.
Guardiola simply cannot afford to think about winning the fifth consecutive league title for his team. Manchester City should focus on finishing inside the top four instead, which is still very much within his team’s reach.
He will, however, still have to contend with the likes of Chelsea, Arsenal, Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United to finish inside the top four.
On paper, Manchester City have a better squad than each of the aforementioned teams. If they play up to their potential, they should definitely be able to remain inside the top three teams by the end of the season.
Guardiola should be a relieved man to see his players getting over their collective lean patch. It remains to be seen whether his team can firmly put the horrible form they endured for a couple of months behind them.