Match Report and Player Ratings: Manchester City 3-1 West Ham (Premier League) | OneFootball

Manchester City defeated West Ham 3-1 to lift the Premier League trophy for the fourth year in a row, becoming the first team in the competition’s history to achieve this feat.

The Treble Winners walked onto the pitch at the Etihad Stadium with one objective: win the match, win the title. Top of the table, Pep Guardiola’s men were keen on keeping their spot on the final day of the league and script history.

The home side scored their opening goal inside 90 seconds, with local hero and newly-crowned Premier League Player of the Season, Phil Foden taking the stage. The 23-year-old played in central midfield and produced a moment of brilliance early on in the game.

Foden received the ball and glided past the defence to take his shot from the edge of the box with his left foot. The ball curled into the far corner, putting Manchester City within a touching distance of the gold.

The England forward would strike again when City started building a threat from the left. Josko Gvardiol and Erling Haaland combined tactfully to start a play before passing the ball to Jeremy Doku. He found Foden up front with a sublime low-cross, and the latter swept it past Alphonse Areola to make it two for the defending champions.

Other attempts from Manchester City saw Rodri, Kevin de Bruyne, and Erling Haaland miss chances, but the relentless pressure was seemingly wearing down David Moyes’ team until they took their turn to strike. West Ham stepped inside the City box with Mohammed Kudus’ driving effort shot across the goal but Stefan Ortega stood his ground the first time.

But the closing minutes of the first half saw Kudus’ second attempt. He received the ball in front of the goal from a corner and drove it inside the nets with an overhead kick to close the lead. There were shouts for handball from City players, but to no avail. Elsewhere in London, Arsenal had equalised against Everton at this point.

City had a relatively calm start to the second half and were soon rewarded for their patience. The players combined well to keep the possession before Bernardo Silva found Rodri, who had spotted his window. The Spaniard side-footed the ball into the low corner, beyond the reach of the diving West Ham goalkeeper, to restore the hosts’ two-goal lead.

The visiting side managed to put the ball inside the net for the second time from James Ward-Prowse’s deflected corner. However, the goal was disallowed by VAR for handball, giving City a huge sigh of relief.

In the end, a composed effort from the defending champions allowed them to pick up a monumental victory on the final day of the season. A brace from Foden and a clutch goal from Rodri poetically put Manchester City at the pinnacle of English football, immortalising the Sky Blues.

Home fans in attendance wasted no time in invading the pitch to celebrate as Man City beat second-placed Arsenal by two points to become the Premier League champions for the fourth consecutive year.

The Pep Guardiola-led side will now return to action for their final game of the season next weekend when they take on Manchester United in the FA Cup final. Here’s how we felt the Man City players fared in the final league game of the season!

Player Ratings

Stefan Ortega – 7

Made a good save, was beaten by the pace when conceding the goal.

Kyle Walker – 7

Responsible for crucial blocks and intercepted counter-attacks early in the first half

Ruben Dias – 7

Played his defensive duties and occasionally helped drive the attacks forward

Manuel Akanji – 6

Worked well alongside Ruben Dias and Kyle Walker, could have done better to help maintain possession

Josko Gvardiol – 8

Impressive in defense, brilliant in attack. Controlled and drove spells of attack as needed.

Rodri – 8

It wasn’t the Spaniard’s best game in the first half, but his goal helped ease Manchester City’s nerves in the second half.

Kevin De Bruyne – 7

Massively involved in most City attacks, produced wonderful crosses that could have easily added to the home side’s goal tally

Phil Foden – 9 (Man of the Match)

Ran the show from the midfield and scored two stunners. Aggressive with the ball and tactful with his attacks, he was City’s finest on the pitch.

Bernardo Silva – 7

Workhorse as always, played a key role in setting up gaols for Foden and Rodri apiece

Jeremy Doku – 8

Had a confident start to his game, took on more runs, and troubled the defense on the left flank

Erling Haaland – 6

Missed two big chances in the first half, and a handful in the second. Arguably unlucky in front of the goal but definitely far from his best.

Substitutes

Nathan Ake – 7

Kept City composed at the back after coming on and made a good block

Mateo Kovacic – N/A