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Manchester City went seven points clear at the top of the Premier League table with an utterly dominant performance. They blew Tottenham Hotspur away with a 3-0 victory at the Etihad.
Manchester City, aiming to secure their fifth Premier League trophy, came into the match on the back of an incredible 15-game winning run in all competitions. The visitors, on the other hand, had lost four of their last five games in all competitions.
Manchester City, as expected, began the game on the front-foot and controlled proceedings in the first fifteen minutes of the game. But it was the London-based club who came closest to opening the scoring as Harry Kane hit the woodwork with a brilliantly taken free-kick.
Manchester City, however, got the lead when Ilkay Gundogan was brought down by a clumsy tackle from Hojberg in the 18-yard box.
Surprisingly, it was midfielder Rodri who stepped up to take the spot-kick and he made no mistake as he found the bottom corner.
Manchester City came out the hungrier of the two sides in the second half and soon got their much-deserved second goal five minutes after the restart, thanks to an in-form Ilkay Gundogan's strike.
Manchester City’s third goal of the evening came soon enough, as Gundogan humiliated Sanchez before firing past Lloris to seal the win for his side.
The result sees City go seven points clear of second-placed Leicester City, recording their 11th straight Premier League win and 16th in all competitions.
Spurs, however, remain eighth and could potentially drop to ninth as early as Sunday morning.
On that note:
Manchester City 3-0 Tottenham: 5 Talking Points
#5 Gareth Bale's Tottenham career has not gone according to plan
Gareth Bale moved back to Tottenham on loan in the summer amidst much fanfare after falling out with his parent club Real Madrid. The Welshman was practically ostracized in the Spanish capital last summer and was at loggerheads with the board, his manager and even the fans.
So when the opportunity arose for him to return to Tottenham, it made sense for all parties involved. Bale, who has scored hundreds of goals over an injury-laden but very successful career, was expected to jump straight into the starting XI at Spurs.
This has not been the case, however, as the 31-year-old has started just two league games all season. Bale oddly finds himself behind the likes of Lucas Moura, Bergwijn and Lamela in Mourinho's pecking order.
He has been an unused substitute in Tottenham's last two league games and was completely absent from the squad in Spurs' FA Cup defeat to Everton earlier this week.
Against Manchester City, he was once again shunned by the manager until the game was pretty much lost.
It must therefore be confusing to most as to why a player with such pedigree and ability is rotting away on the bench while the team struggles.
#4 Manchester City star Ilkay Gundogan scores again
Gundogan has never been known to score prolifically, but the German has hit a different level in that aspect this season. The midfielder got his 10th and 11th league goals of the campaign against Spurs, which is more than he managed in his two previous seasons combined.
The first goal was a well-taken strike with his weaker left foot after sneaking in behind the Tottenham defense and latching on to a searching pass from Sterling.
The second was an absolute beauty. The German made a run from deep to beat the offside trap, before controlling a long ball from Ederson with a silky touch and calmly finishing off after spinning the hapless Sanchez to the ground.
Gundogan's goals now further strengthen his status as the top scorer for Manchester City in the Premier League this season.
The Manchester City midfielder has also scored the second-highest number of goals as a midfielder in the league - only Bruno Fernandes has more.
#3 Manchester City thrive without De Bruyne
Manchester City's best player Kevin De Bruyne continues to be out of the side after going off injured against Aston Villa last month.
However, the Citizens are playing brilliantly without the midfielder and their win tonight makes it a seventh-straight win in all competitions without De Bruyne.
Since his injury, there hasn’t seemed to be any sign of weakness or slowing down in the Manchester-based side.
With Manchester City being at their usual rampant best without De Bruyne, one can only wonder what heights they could hit with the Belgian, who is one of the best midfielders in the world.
#2 Tottenham's struggles continue
Jose Mourinho's men have avoided defeat only three times in their last seven league games, with all three coming against the bottom three clubs in the league table.
Their struggles have also been further marked by a glaring inability to score goals, as Spurs have scored just three goals in their last five league games while conceding 10.
Much of the goalscoring responsibility has been put on the attacking duo of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min. The duo have scored an astonishing 72% of the league goals scored be Tottenham this season.
It is therefore expected that a drop in form or opposition restricting either or both of the Tottenham stars would drastically or completely nullify Spurs' offensive output.
#1 Manchester City's form - The sign of future champions
Manchester City have been outstanding both in defense and attack in recent weeks. The league leaders have not lost a game in any competition since November last year, stretching it to 23 games.
The Etihad outfit have been immense in attack, coming second only to neighbors Manchester United in league goals scored this campaign.
They have been even more impressive in defense, conceding a league-low 14 goals in 23 games alongside a league-high 14 clean sheets.
Manchester City are currently firing on all cylinders, scoring goals at will and conceding very few.
All this, coupled with a seven-point gap at the top of the table, makes it hard not to think of the Citizens as potential champions.
