City take huge step towards title: Five things we learned from Tottenham 0-2 Manchester City | OneFootball

Manchester City took a massive stride towards a fourth consecutive Premier League title after defeating Tottenham 2-0.

Victory for Pep Guardiola’s men sees them go two points clear of Arsenal heading into the final game of the campaign against West Ham.

Two second half goals from Erling Haaland secured the win for the visitors, with defeat ending Spurs’ chances of Champions League football next season.

Here are five things we learnt from a potentially defining day in the title race…

Spurs need a number nine in the summer

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Tottenham showed plenty of attacking threat in the first half against Manchester City, but like large parts of this season, they have lacked a striker to finish off these chances. Spurs have done well to deal with the departure of striker Harry Kane since the England captain’s departure in the summer, but they are now lacking a clear focal point up front. Son Heung-min has done well in Kane’s absence but Ange Postecoglou will surely be urging the Spurs hierarchy to get in a number nine this summer.

Encouraging first half display shows Spurs’ potential

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In his pre-match press conference, Ange Postecoglou said he wanted his Tottenham side to go out and compete with City, the best side in the Premier League. Despite being defeated by them, Spurs played some fine football, particularly in the first half, and at times looked the more dominant side against the most formidable of opponents. Although they fell behind early in the second half, they remained a threat until the final whistle, something that Postecoglou can take much encouragement from.

Champions League dream over for Spurs

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Champions League football will be not be coming back to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for at least another year. Defeat for Spurs means the best they can do is play in the Europa League, and hands Aston Villa a place in Europe’s premier club competition. After a good start to the season, injuries and inconsistencies have led to Spurs missing out on the top four for a second consecutive campaign.

City finally score a league goal away at Tottenham

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It might have taken 51 minutes into the sixth league match between Spurs and Man City at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but Pep Guardiola’s side finally managed to score a league goal away at the venue. City were not at their best in the first half as Tottenham out possessed them and looked the far superior side at times, but it only took one slip of concentration from the hosts to allow Kevin de Bruyne to provide Erling Haaland with the simplest of tap ins.

Rodrigo’s rage and angry Ederson

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After Rodrigo Bentancur and Ederson were substituted for their respective sides, both the Uruguayan midfielder and Brazilian goalkeeper completely lost their heads. Bentancur took his anger out by repeatedly kicking his chair aggressively, whilst Ederson almost came to blows with his manager Pep Guardiola, as the pair had a heated conversation when the goalkeeper was taken off. In a game of huge importance, emotions certainly got the better of these two stars.