Match Report: Southampton 1-4 Manchester City (Premier League) | OneFootball

Manchester City emerged 4-1 victors against Southampton in the Premier League at St. Mary’s on Saturday evening.

It was a battle between two teams at either side of the table as the relegation-stricken Saints hosted the reigning Premier League champions.

The hosts were desperate to pick up points and help maintain their status in the top flight, while City were determined to close the gap on league leaders Arsenal ahead of their trip to Anfield on Sunday.

Despite the hopes of survival, Southampton would’ve been under no illusion that the battle wasn’t just a mental one, with City likely to put them to the sword and make it a difficult afternoon.

It was early dominance for Pep Guardiola’s men on the possession front and it was the visitors who carved out the first chance of the match.

After a slick passing move, the Blues found themselves in a three versus two situation. Ilkay Gundogan slipped Jack Grealish through inside the penalty area but the chance went abegging as it was a tame effort from the England international, which forced the save from Gavin Bazunu.

With 91% possession in just over seven minutes, it was unsurprising to see the pressure pile up on Southampton. However, a lapse in concentration from Kevin De Bruyne saw Kamaldeen Sulemana pickpocket the Belgian in the Saints half and carry the ball 60 yards into the Manchester City penalty area.

The away side were fortunate as Nathan Ake put the Saints forward off balance, allowing Ederson to rush out of his goal and swipe the ball from the attacker’s feet.

Southampton carried some momentum following the half chance and grew in confidence, forcing Ruben Dias to make an exceptional tackle and a well-timed clearance inside his own penalty area.

A lack of touches is an unsurprising statistic for Erling Haaland, who is rarely at the forefront of the build-up, but three touches after 29 minutes outlined Southampton’s resolute defending in the early stages.

However, Haaland reminded the Southampton backline of the threat he poses just before the 40 minute mark, running through the defence but failing to latch onto a pinpoint Kevin De Bruyne ball over the top.

Less than a minute after, it was the same pair combining to carve out a chance, as Haaland’s threat began to grow. The Norwegian found himself on the end of a De Bruyne cross but couldn’t convert from inside the penalty area.

It was only a matter of time though, as the inevitable struck and Haaland broke the deadlock on the stroke of half-time, after being set up by who else but Kevin De Bruyne. The 22-year-old leapt highest and headed in from a delicious De Bruyne ball.

The first-half came to a close with City taking the late lead, with a score-line which perhaps flattered the visitors after a relatively even opening 45 minutes.

The pattern of the play resumed in the second half as City dictated the tempo, creating another early chance as Gundogan picked the ball up on the edge of the Southampton box. The Manchester City captain curled a shot which went just wide of the far corner.

Guardiola decided to make a couple of changes 10 minutes into the second-half, as Bernardo Silva and Kyle Walker came on for Riyad Mahrez and John Stones respectively.

The changes influenced proceedings instantly, as Silva launched the attack which lead to City doubling their lead. The ball found its way to De Bruyne, who played in Grealish, who had a strike saved by Gavin Bazunu before converting the rebound to give the Blues some breathing space.

Having a player like De Bruyne at your disposal is always a recipe for disaster, if you’re the opposition that is. Shortly after City’s second, the Belgian picked up a bit of space and threaded the ball through to Silva, who couldn’t convert his chance.

Pressure was mounting and Haaland was rising, as Grealish picked the Norwegian out inside the box, and the former Borussia Dortmund man converted acrobatically, firing a scissor kick past Gavin Bazunu and leaving the former City goalkeeper stranded and St. Mary’s quite simply speechless.

That memorable effort was to be Haaland’s final contribution of the evening, bowing out in style before being replaced by Julian Alvarez just prior to the 70-minute mark.

Southampton managed to pull one back not long after, after Moussa Djenepo evaded a few challenges before teeing up Sekou Mara, who coolly converted his effort and pulled one back for the Saints.

It was the response of champions from Manchester City though, who found themselves inside the Southampton penalty area instantly after play resumed. Kevin De Bruyne was brought down by a challenge from Kyle-Walker Peters, giving City a chance to restore a three-goal cushion.

Haaland watched on as Alvarez converted from 12 yards and put the game to bed. We don’t see him as a bitter man, but we all know Haaland will be aware that penalty would’ve been his chance for a hat-trick had he been on the pitch.

It was all smiles in the Manchester City camp though, as they continued to stamp their authority in the game, turning on the style and blowing Southampton out of the water in a statement performance that resulted in their second 4-1 triumph running.

With the game effectively over, Guardiola made another couple of cautious changes ahead of City’s Champions League quarter final opening leg clash against Bayern Munich on Tuesday. Sergio Gomez and Kalvin Phillips replaced Nathan Ake and Rodrigo respectively with ten minutes to go.

The Blues kept the ball for the remainder of the game, passing the ball about in slick, trademark fashion.

The game ended there with Manchester City emerging as worthy winners, putting the pressure on Arsenal ahead of their clash with Liverpool on Sunday. City kept their momentum up, extending their run to eight consecutive victories across all competitions.

City now turn their attention to the midweek battle against Thomas Tuchel’s Bayern, 90 minutes of football that have all the makings of an all-time European classic at the Etihad Stadium.