Erling Haaland marked his return from injury with the winning goal as Manchester City defeated Tottenham Hotspur 1-0, reclaiming a top-four spot in the Premier League on Thursday (IST).
City, coming off a loss to Liverpool, entered the match trailing league leaders by 20 points and had slipped to fifth after Chelsea’s victory over Southampton. However, Pep Guardiola’s side dominated the first half, with Haaland tapping in his 20th league goal of the season. The Norwegian became only the second player after Ruud van Nistelrooy to reach 20 goals in each of his first three Premier League seasons.
Haaland appeared to score again late in the match, but the goal was disallowed for handball. Despite their first-half control, City had to work hard defensively in the second half as Spurs improved but failed to find an equalizer.
With 11 matches left, City moved back into the top four, while Spurs remain 13th with 33 points. Guardiola acknowledged City’s struggles in the second half but praised the win. “We should have closed it earlier, but this was an important result for Champions League qualification,” he said.
Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou admitted his side’s slow start cost them. “We dominated the second half but lacked the goal to change the game. We were wasteful early, and against City, you can't afford that,” he remarked.
