United Kingdom:
Manchester City moved closer to qualifying for the Champions League as Kevin De Bruyne sealed a vital 1-0 win against Wolves on Friday. Pep Guardiola’s side are embroiled in a tense battle for a top five finish in the Premier League and De Bruyne lifted them to third place with his first half strike at the Etihad Stadium. For just the second time in a turbulent campaign, City have reeled off five successive wins in all competitions. It was a major boost to City’s hopes of securing a place in Europe’s elite club competition.
Sixth-placed Nottingham Forest’s loss against Brentford on Thursday had provided further impetus to City’s top five chase and they took full advantage thanks to De Bruyne’s farewell tour.
After 10 years at the club, it was De Bruyne’s penultimate appearance at the Etihad after the midfielder was told he will not get a new contract when his present deal expires at the end of the season.
It was only the sixth goal this season for the 33-year-old Belgian, underlining why Guardiola has decided to release him after an injury-plagued decline over the last two years.
But De Bruyne’s contribution could be crucial for City, who have three matches left and hold a four-point advantage over Forest, who play their game in hand against Crystal Palace on Monday.
Fourth-placed Newcastle and fifth-placed Chelsea also have a game in hand over City heading into the weekend’s fixtures.
Even qualifying for the Champions League and winning the FA Cup final against Crystal Palace will not salvage the season in Guardiola’s eyes after their four-year reign as English champions came to a limp end.
Surrendering the title to Liverpool was bad enough, but missing out on a place in the Champions League for the first time since 2010-11 would be a complete catastrophe and this result kept them on course to avoid that fate.
Guardiola sprang a surprise by naming Erling Haaland among his substitutes as the Norway striker returned ahead of schedule from the ankle injury he suffered at Bournemouth in March.
De Bruyne makes his point
Having insisted on Thursday that Haaland wasn’t ready to feature following his return to full training this week, it was intriguing that Guardiola opted to bring him back into the fold so quickly.
As Haaland watch on, City started on the front foot, with De Bruyne’s cross cleared to the edge of the Wolves area, where Omar Marmoush blasted over.
Wolves arrived buoyed by six successive top-flight victories for the first time since 1970-71 and their confidence was clear after such a successful streak.
They should have taken the lead when Andre’s pass sent Jean-Ricner Bellegarde sprinting clear, but the forward strangely opted to aim for Marshall Munetsi instead of shooting and made a hash of the pass.
Not for the first time this season, City were creaking at the back.
They rode their luck to escape as Rayan Ait-Nouri fired against the post from close-range before his effort from the rebound was cleared off the line by Josko Gvardiol.
Guardiola’s men recovered their composure and the breakthrough came in the 35th minute with the kind of flowing move that has been City’s trademark in De Bruyne’s decade in Manchester.
Ilkay Gundogan made a break from midfield and slipped his pass to Jeremy Doku, who deftly eluded his marker before pulled the ball back to the unmarked De Bruyne.
Having cleverly found space just inside the Wolves area, De Bruyne held his nerve to slot past Jose Sa, a finish that showed City what they will miss next season.
Wolves still carried a threat and Matheus Cunha rattled the post with a stinging strike from the edge of the area in the second half.
City struggled to find their rhythm in the second half, but Guardiola kept Haaland on the bench, instead sending on Phil Foden and James McAtee as the hosts clung to their lead.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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