At the blast of the full-time whistle in North London, Pep Guardiola scored another big point on his managerial ingenuity, edging out Tottenham in the fourth round of the FA Cup.
The Citizens arrive in North London for the rollercoaster FA Cup clash determined to reverse their winless deadlock. Over the years, Tottenham Hotspur have made the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium the most difficult ground for the Premier League giants.
In six matches, City have not won a match at the stadium. Moreso, they have not scored a single goal. Conversely, Tottenham have not failed to score in their last 35 matches.
With City’s hoodoo at the North London club and the Lilywhite’s endless scoring streak, City headed into the game on a disadvantage.
But as Guardiola would have it, a carefully thought-out game-plan overturned the deadlock and condemned the Lilywhites to FA Cup fourth-round exit.
It was largely an open game, as the two sides, known for their expressly attacking style of play, tried to get the better of the other.
Consequently, the game took on a frantic pace but City were on the ascendancy. Surprisingly, the resurgent Ange Postecoglou side wreathed agonizingly in Manchester City’s half with limited touches, and could not fire a shot on target.
Tottenham’s only attempt on target came in the 53rd minute with a faint but potent effort by Brennan Johnson.
While the hosts grapple with depleted chances, City stamped their dominance in the game. An early goal in the first half was ruled out as offside.
Kevin De Bruyne and Bernardo starred for City as usual but squandered some clearcut chances. With two minutes from regulation time, City needed a goal from an unlikely source, Nathan Ake, to take the lead after Tottenham’s goalkeeper Vicario failed to gather the visitor’s corner kick.
The goal was enough to send City through to the next round of the competition while Tottenham Hotspur crashed out of their second domestic competition this season with their hopes of ending their trophy drought now looking remote.