Manchester City stay in the title race – just – and wait for Liverpool’s luck to run out
When the final whistle sounded on Saturday evening, bringing to a close almost two hours of breathless and unpredictable football in the teeming Manchester rain, Pep Guardiola could afford himself a sigh of relief.
Despite seeing Raheem Sterling’s late goal ruled out for offside in controversial circumstances, Guardiola’s Manchester City had done enough – just – to keep a fingertip on the Premier League trophy.
A 2-1 win over Chelsea was not undeserved, although so open was the end-to-end contest that the visitors, who led through N’Golo Kante’s goal, might equally have taken all three points.
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That would probably have been fatal for City’s hopes of retaining their crown.
Already nine points adrift following a demoralising 3-1 defeat at leaders Liverpool this month, another slip-up would have left them needing a momentum swing only seen once before in the Premier League era, when Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle melted away in 1996.
Instead, their task remains improbable but not virtually unprecedented.
City wobbled, conceding first when Kante outmuscled Benjamin Mendy in the chase for a rudimentary long ball and slotted past Ederson, and gave up a bigger share of possession than any of Guardiola’s teams ever have in more than 380 top-flight games.
They responded swiftly, though, first through Kevin De Bruyne’s deflected shot and then, eight minutes before half-time, when Riyad Mahrez danced in from the right flank and threaded a low shot into the far corner in mesmerising fashion.
More goals after the break seemed certain, yet none came – save for Sterling’s disallowed effort, chalked off for a margin of offside seemingly imperceptible to the naked eye.
Unsustainable
Having dodged a bullet himself, Guardiola could be forgiven for thinking that Liverpool’s luck must run out soon.
A 2-1 win at Crystal Palace earlier on Saturday was the latest example of the Reds snatching maximum points with very little to spare.
Six of their last seven league wins have come by a single goal, which on five occasions was scored in the last 20 minutes and three times in the last five minutes.
It is the sort of pattern that makes their run of 37 points from a possible 39 this season seem unsustainable. That they are the best team in the country is undeniable, but this is extraordinary.
A looming trip to Qatar next month for the dubious privilege of contesting the Club World Cup might prove the stick in their spokes; an additional workload that weakens them before the busy Christmas period.
City, meanwhile, have their own potential pitfalls in the coming weeks, including a Manchester derby and a visit from in-form Leicester. That can wait. They remain in the hunt – just – for now at least.
Dangerous months
November and December are dangerous months for a football manager, especially those in charge of teams performing below expectations.
Marco Silva, Unai Emery and Manuel Pellegrini may therefore not be sleeping soundly, given the troubled start to the campaign they have presided over at Everton, Arsenal and West Ham respectively.
Saturday’s 2-0 home defeat to a Norwich side who had taken one point from their previous seven games may well be the final straw for Silva, who has never looked at ease at Goodison Park.
Emery must also be on thin ice at Arsenal following their 2-2 draw at home to struggling Southampton, even if the club have previously indicated they are reluctant to axe the Spaniard.
Pellegrini has two points from the last eight matches, after Saturday’s 3-2 defeat by Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham, and lie 16th in the table, one place below Everton.
History suggests the Chilean could be the safest of the three, though. West Ham have shown a reluctance to fire coaches – only two have been paid off in the last eight years – and Pellegrini, the highest-paid manager in Hammers history, would not be cheap to release.