EFE.- Julián Álvarez and Phil Foden, forgotten by Pep Guardiola in their last line-ups, they gave a blow on the table this Saturday and, on their return to ownership, they emerged as the main agitators for Manchester City in the resounding 0-4 win of the ‘citizen’ over Bournemouth that allows them to follow two points Arsenal leader.
Julián Álvarez, a substitute in the four previous games, and Foden, starting just one of five, showed that they can enjoy more minutes from the start. Both propelled their teammates to victory, gestated with a goal and an assist from each in the first 51 minutes of the match with which they ended any possible resistance from Bournemouth.
The Norwegian Erling Haaland, benefited from one of those assists, is the main cause of the slowdown suffered by Julián Álvarez after the World Cup in Qatar. Competing with the most insatiable predator in soccer is almost a losing fight. But, on this occasion, Guardiola’s heart softened and for the sixth time in the course, the “Spider” coincided with Haaland in a starting eleven to show that the partnership formed by both is almost always profitable.
PAIR
This is reflected in the statistics, because with them on the pitch, Manchester City beat Nottingham Forest 6-0, Copenhagen 5-0 and Tottenham 4-2, while they drew 0-0 against Dortmund and lost 1-0 in another match against Tottenham. In those duels, Haaland accumulated six goals and Julián Álvarez, three.
On this occasion, the “Spider” did not play alongside the Norwegian in attack. He slotted in behind as the finish shuttle in a line of three with Jack Grealish and Foden. And it was the Argentine who was in charge of opening the can to give City a lot of peace of mind, which was at stake to stay close to the leader, Arsenal, against a team immersed in the fight not to lose the category.
After a quarter of an hour, Julián Álvarez opened the scoring after picking up the rejection of a shot against Haaland’s crossbar. He only had to push the ball into the net under the goal defended by Neto, but it was a reward for a fierce insistence from the initial whistle. In addition, the amount of him not only met his individual needs. It also served to clear up any doubts about Bournemouth’s options, which have since sunk hopelessly.
UNFAILABLE
Julián Álvarez’s success was soon followed by another celebration, that of Haaland in the thirty minute, when Foden started his own claim with a luxury assist for the Norwegian, who took advantage of a spur from the young City player to shoot Neto.
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Foden would still take center stage in the last play of the opening act. He wanted more in his 200th game in a City shirt and he won his prize with a goal from a mistake by Phillip Billing, who missed a delivery. Foden, with the cane ready, solved like a charm against Neto, desperate for the lack of defensive forcefulness of his teammates.
STRIKE
The 0-3 was an insurmountable slab for Bournemouth, who, very soon, had to regret the same thing at the restart. Julián Álvarez, once again, claimed prominence when he found the ball inside the area and shot Neto. However, his shot was not aimed at the goal, he bounced off Chris Mepham and the goal was not awarded to the Argentine.
However, he left his mark again, as in the previous minutes. And, together with Foden, he was the best in a clash marked by the rebellion of two of those forgotten by Guardiola in recent days. Both spoke from the pitch and the Manchester City coach took note after a game in which his team, which in the end received a goal from Jefferson Lerma, ended the day two points behind leader Arsenal with one more game.
