BY Jonathan Ledger
Manchester City displayed their supremacy over Manchester United in the city’s derby with a 3-1 win at the Etihad Stadium.
Pep Guardiola’s team flexed their squad supremacy from the first minute, and went ahead through David Silva, the Spaniard slotting in from close range after Sterling’s cut back was deflected into his path.
United did not have a shot on target in an abject first half and were further behind early in the second from Sergio Aguero’s rocket shot. The Argentine exchanged passes with Mahrez before beating De Gea with a rifled shot.
Jose Mourinho brought on Romelu Lukaku to wrestle the game from the opponent and the Belgian won a penalty with his first touch after City keeper, Ederson, clumsily rushed out to bring down the bulky striker.
Anthony Martial converted the spot-kick to extend his scoring streak to five games, joining an exclusive class of players to have done so for the Old Trafford club, including the likes of Eric Cantona and Dwight Yorke.
City, however, slowed down the game to walking pace and had the last word with a well-worked third goal, Ilkay Gundogan converting a 44-pass move which culminated in Sterling crossing for him to convert from four yards out. The win keeps City in first place on the EPL log, two ahead of Liverpool who defeated Fulham 2-0 thanks to a textbook counter-attack goal from Mohamed Salah, and a good finish from Xherdan Shaqiri.
Chelsea were, however, held to a 0-0 draw by Everton at Stamford Bridge but kept their unbeaten record. Mauricio Sarri, who became the first Chelsea coach to go twelve games unbeaten, watched his team dominated but were thwarted by a spirited Everton.
In Spain, Barcelona suffered a rare defeat despite Leo Messi’s presence, losing 3-4 against Real Betis. The Seville-based club raced into a two-goal first-half lead thanks to goals from Junior Firpo and veteran, Joaquin.
Messi, so often Barca’s saviour, reduced the deficit from the spot but Betis made it 3-1 through a rare error from Barca keeper, Marc-Andre ter Stegen. The German flapped at Giovanni Lo Celso’s rising but tame shot and deflected it into the net.
Arturo Vidal reduced the deficit with a tap-in but Betis, who had been slicing the Barcelona defence open all afternoon, added the fourth much to the disbelief of the Catalan crowd. Leo Messi’s second goal proved to be just a consolation as Betis held on to celebrate a famous 4-3 win at the Camp Nou, Barca’s first loss at home in two years.
Real Madrid, however, won a tricky tie at Celta Vigo 4-2 thanks to a brace from Karim Benzema.
In Italy, Juventus continued to show why they are tipped as the best club in Europe with a professional 2-0 win over AC Milan at San Siro stadium. The Old Lady of Turin took the lead less than 10 minutes into the game through Mario Mandzukic, the Croatian striker burying a neat header from Alex Sandro’s cross. Higuain changed from Juve to AC Milan due to the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo and the Argentine should have made his old club pay from the spot but his penalty was saved by Szczęsny in Juve goal. Ronaldo would have the final say on proceedings, sealing the three points on the rebound from Joao Cancelo’s shot, while Higuain was sent off late on, earning a red card for hurling abusive words at the referee.
In Germany, Borussia Dortmund opened a seven-point gap at the top of the Bundesliga summit following a 3-2 comeback win over arc rivals, Bayern Munich. Robert Lewandowski scored both goals for Niko Kovac’s side but on each occasion, Dortmund equalised through goals from captain, Marco Reus. Paco Alcacer scored the winner with a dinked finish to condemn Bayern to a third league loss while preserving their own unbeaten run.
Finally, in France, Thierry Henry’s baptism of fire continued with Monaco’s 0-4 drubbing in the hands of PSG in their backyard. An Edison Cavani hat-trick and Neymar penalty consigned Henry, in his managerial debut, to six games without a win and Monaco continue to languish at the foot of the table.
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