Manchester City 4-2 Tottenham: Riyad Mahrez completes sensational comeback to keep Arsenal in range

Pep Guardiola’s side were given a major scare at the Etihad
Riyad Mahrez scored twice in a crucial Man City win over Tottenham
AP
Matt Verri19 January 2023

Manchester City avoided another slip-up in the title race as they came from two goals down to beat Tottenham 4-2 at the Etihad.

Goals from Dejan Kulusevski and Emerson Royal just before the break had put Spurs in complete control, the visitors on course to leave Arsenal eight points clear at the top of the Premier League with a game in hand.

But Pep Guardiola emerged after half-time to produce the kind of peformance that has evaded them in recent games. Julian Alvarez and Erling Haaland scored twice in as many minutes to level things up, before Riyad Mahrez fired the hosts in front just after the hour mark to complete a remarkable turnaround.

Spurs hit the post through Ivan Perisic but could not find an equaliser, and Mahrez netted his second of the match late on to put it to bed. Tottenham have only won once in the League since the World Cup.

On the whole it was an even first-half, City struggling to open the visitors up while Spurs offered a threat on the counter as they so often have in this fixture.

Rico Lewis had a deflected shot saved before Haaland headed a good chance over the bar, and that miss proved costly as Spurs produced a stunning 129 seconds.

City’s confidence at the back proved to be their downfall, Ederson playing a terrible pass out to Rodri who could only knock it to Kulusevski. The winger kept his nerve to find the bottom corner as Ederson came flying off his line.

And just before half-time Spurs made it two, Kane’s drive parried straight out to Royal who looped a header beyond a stunned Ederson. That proved to be pretty much the final kick of the half, as City were booed off.

Those boos turned to raucous cheers as the hosts flew out of the blocks after the break and needed 18 minutes to turn the match on its head.

Alvarez pulled one back, as Hugo Lloris lunged for the ball and failed to make any sort of meaningful contact, leaving the World Cup winner to lift a finish into the roof of the net.

Barely two minutes later and City were level, Mahrez nodding the ball across the six-yard box to leave Haaland the simplest of finishes to end his very brief goal drought.

Spurs by now were badly rocking, the City pressure relentless, and eventually it told. Ivan Perisic got caught out, leaving space for Mahrez to drive into. He worked the ball onto his right foot, lashed an effort at goal and it found a way past Hugo Lloris with the help of the slighest of deflections.

There was nearly an immediate equaliser from Ivan Perisic, as Kulusevski burst away down the right and played a perfect cut back into the path of the wing-back. His strike was a decent one, but Rico Lewis did brilliantly to somehow divert it onto the woodwork.

Mahrez put any hopes of a Spurs response to bed in the closing stages, pouncing on a mistake from Clement Lenglet to run through on goal and dink a lovely finish over Lloris, capping a stunning 45 minutes on a personal and collective level.

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