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Manchester City cruised to their 28th victory in the Premier League following a hellish 10-day span that involved back-to-back losses to Liverpool, a Derby defeat to what had looked like a down-and-out United and Champions League elimination.
Facing a top team for the fourth time in a row, Pep Guardiola's men did well to shrug off the pressure and get a 3-1 win against Tottenham at the Wembley.
City made three changes from the ignominious 2nd leg defeat to Liverpool; Vincent Kompany, Fabian Delph, and Ilkay Gundogan replaced Nicolas Otamendi, Bernardo Silva, and the suspended Fernandinho.
Gabriel Jesusand Gundogan helped City take the lead in the first half. Christian Eriksen's goal gave the Tottenham fans a ray of hope which was quashed by Raheem Sterling who scored the third to secure as many points.
Should Man United lose to West Brom at Old Trafford, Guardiola and co. could well start the party. However, should their arch-rivals win, Man City can confirm the title against Swansea next weekend.
On that note, let's have a glance at the three points the Cityzens were spot on in the fixture.
#3 Man City balanced their aggression pretty well
Attack is the best form of defence.
That's what Manchester City have followed this season, playing swashbuckling football. However, Pep Guardiola has been criticized for following a one-dimensional approach to the games.
His team has focused far too much on pressurizing, attacking and scoring goals while denying attention to their defensive weaknesses. The approach did cost them a longer stay in the Champions League coupled with a derby loss to Manchester United.
But that wasn't going to be the case today.
Guardiola's men were at their menacing best but their defensive improvements were visible throughout the game. There were times when their backline looked a bit shaky, but they did manage to hold Spurs at bay in the end.
City was good at balancing their aggression and rarely found themselves out of position when they were not in possession. They looked confident in the first half and dominated Pochettino's men by exploiting the space afforded to them by Tottenham. However, as intensely as they attacked, City showed equal determination in holding on to their lead.
#2 The tactical switch
When Pochettino decided to replace the ineffective Erik Lamela with Son Heung-Min (a surprise exclusion from the starting XI) to add flair upfront, Guardiola was more than ready with his options. The Spaniard quickly introduced Nicolas Otamendi in the 64th minute in place of Leroy Sane who looked a bit off-clour for the Citizens.
Ten minutes later after Sterling had struck City's third, he withdrew Gabriel Jesus for Bernardo Silva, ordering the Englishman to function in the center while Silva took his place on the right.
Initially functioning in 4-3-3, Man City shifted to a 5-3-2 and successfully defended their lead until the final whistle.
The Sky Blues closed down the spaces and allowed no openings for Eriksen, Moura, Son, and Alli to find Kane. They also won the aerial battle against the Lillywhites, winning 14 out of total 23 duels in the air.
Fair enough, paying deserved attention to their defence paid Manchester City wealthy dividends as they went home with a 3-1 win and 3 points in the bag.
#3 Credit is due to multiple players
While Tottenham did nothing special to hold on to their fantastic home record in the Premier League, a bunch of Guardiola's men performed their roles to near perfection which resulted in 3 points.
In the defence, Vincent Kompany and Aymeric Laporte complemented each other pretty well, making important tackles through 90 minutes. Thanks to their solid defensive partnership, Ederson enjoyed a relaxing time between the post.
With Gundogan sitting deep behind David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne, the duo savoured their freedom in moving forward. De Bruyne displayed great vision and produced a fantastic flick pass with the outside of his right foot. He also won the midfield battle against Moussa Dembele. Silva made his wise presence known and Gundogan scored in his second consecutive game with a perfect shot from 12 yards.
Upfront, City could have been more clinical, but they did manage to win, didn't they?
Raheem Sterling missed some good chances but made dangerous attacking runs in the final third keeping the Tottenham defenders on their toes. Thanks to his hard work, he did win the penalty for City and got a well-deserved goal in the end.
Gabriel Jesus showed great zeal and presence of mind in making justice to Vincent Kompany's inch-perfect long ball from the back by firing it into the net. He's maturing at a very good rate and proving to be a worthy heir for Sergio Aguero at the club.
All in all, City put in a performance that will remind people why they are currently holding a mammoth lead at the top of the table.
