GUARDIOLA DELIVERS VERDICT: STONES REMAINS CITY’S DEFENSIVE GEM
Pep Guardiola praises John Stones' England form and addresses his Man City contract. The manager also joked about how to stop the "exceptional" Erling Haaland, who has 21 goals in 12 games this season.
John Stones' strong performance for England during the international break pleased Pep Guardiola.
The City supporter performed at his effortless best for Thomas Tuchel's team in games against Wales and Latvia.
At his news conference on Friday, Guardiola was asked if he was delighted with his defender's recent development. He responded, "I am thrilled he is back, and there are no worries about his quality."
"I am glad he is representing his nation."
The manager was also questioned regarding Stone's present contract status.
One of our longest-serving players, Stones, is only 31 years old and in his eighth season at the Etihad.
Pep, however, refused to answer the question.
"Ask me nothing about that," he said.
"We will observe John's performance, and the club will choose what is best for him."
John is in the starting lineup when healthy, but his consistency in games has been lacking.
"We must wait to find out."
Guardiola was also questioned about how, if he were the opposing manager, he would stop Erling Haaland.
With 21 goals in just 12 club and national games this season, the Norwegian has been in unstoppable form.
[How can I prevent him?] "Four central defenders!" Pep grinned.
When he was at Dortmund, I had the pleasure of facing him. Hopefully, I will not have to deal with him ever again!
He is a very good player. He is one of the four or six players in world football who are truly exceptional and have an impact, and I am very happy for him.
Players took advantage of the opportunity to make a claim when others were sidelined due to injury, and Guardiola was also questioned about the squad's completeness.
He stated, "That is the objective; they have to compete."
"Jeremy did not play against Brentford, but he was amazing this season."
They have to compete and make a decision at the end of the day.
"All right, I have to improve or find an excuse. They want to compete in the end, and while everyone has different players, priorities, and issues, winning games is the ultimate goal.
"Do not worry; you will play if you score three goals, but you cannot get better if you have excuses.
"We do not whine about this and that, which is excellent because they have to compete with each other, and you see them playing well—they are not foolish."
LEGEND STATUS: ERLING HAALAND EQUALS COLIN BELL’S GOAL RECORD IN FULHAM STROLL TODAY
Erling Haaland equals Colin Bell's scoring record as Man City beat Fulham 3-0. Read how Pep’s side closed the gap on Arsenal.
Erling Haaland climbed to joint-fourth on Manchester City’s all-time scoring chart, tying with Colin Bell, as Pep Guardiola’s team brushed aside Fulham 3-0 and closed the gap on Arsenal.
Haaland’s 153rd goal for City came in a match that felt easy for the home side. They barely broke a sweat at the Etihad on Wednesday, cutting Arsenal’s Premier League lead to just three points.
Antoine Semenyo struck first, keeping his hot streak alive, and Nico O’Reilly added another in a match that was basically one-way traffic, with rain pouring down all night.
City did all their damage before halftime. Job done, Haaland didn’t even bother coming out for the second half.
After struggling for a bit, Haaland seemed to snap back into form with a clutch penalty winner at Liverpool on Sunday. Maybe that’s the spark he needed.
Matching Bell’s tally is no small feat—especially considering Haaland’s done it in just 183 games, while Bell had 492.
Honestly, this game was a walk in the park for City. In the last meeting at Craven Cottage, City led 5-1 after 57 minutes but almost let Fulham back in, scraping by 5-4. This time, there wasn’t even a hint of drama.
Fulham made it easy, coughing up possession over and over and giving City every chance to attack.
You could tell a goal was coming. Phil Foden, starting after a spell on the bench, nearly scored twice early on. O’Reilly wasn’t far off either.
The breakthrough came 24 minutes in. Matheus Nunes whipped in a cross from the right, Haaland nodded it down, and Semenyo slid in to poke it past Bernd Leno.
That was Semenyo’s fifth goal in eight games for City, and his third against Fulham this season; he’d already scored twice against them for Bournemouth back in October.
Fulham did get a sniff at goal when Harry Wilson forced a save from Gianluigi Donnarumma, but City hit right back. Haaland got clipped by Joachim Andersen on a counter, but Semenyo kept going and slipped in O’Reilly, who coolly chipped Leno for 2-0.
City’s third came after Fulham gave the ball away yet again. Rayan Ait-Nouri found Foden, Foden passed to Haaland at the edge of the box, and Haaland buried it in the bottom corner for his first league goal from open play since December.
There was a quick VAR check for a possible penalty, with Semenyo claiming his hair got pulled, but nothing came of it.
City eased off after the break. Fulham tried to respond, and Wilson had a lively run, but it fizzled out.
Even with City playing in second gear, Fulham couldn’t get anything going.
Foden tried his luck from a distance but didn’t really trouble Leno, and Josh King forced a late save from Donnarumma, but that was about it.
ERLING HAALAND’S MENTALITY IS THE ONLY REASON MAN CITY CAN CATCH ARSENAL
Erling Haaland’s late penalty at Anfield has cut Arsenal’s lead to three points, reigniting Manchester City’s title charge.
Erling Haaland isn’t giving up on the title just yet. After slotting home a penalty deep into stoppage time at Anfield, he made it clear: “The title race isn’t over until it’s actually over.” That late goal kept Manchester City’s hopes alive.
Honestly, things looked grim with six minutes left. Szoboszlai had just smashed in a free kick, and even with Bernardo Silva’s equaliser, City were still staring at an eight-point gap behind Arsenal. But that penalty—Haaland’s first league goal at Anfield—changed the mood. Now, if City beat Fulham at home on Wednesday, the gap shrinks to three points before Arsenal even kick a ball at Brentford the next day.
Haaland tried to play it cool when people pressed him about the win. “It’s just three points, that’s it. Doesn’t matter if it’s Tottenham, whoever,” he said. But then he admitted, “Yeah, I get it. It was a big one.”
He’s not getting carried away, though. “We’ve seen it before—this race goes down to the wire. Right now, Fulham’s all I’m thinking about. There’s still a lot of football left.”
Haaland’s still the league’s top scorer with 21, but his penalty at Anfield was only his second league goal since Christmas. In his first 20 games this season, he couldn’t stop scoring—30 goals for club and country. Lately, though, the goals have dried up, and he knows it.
“Honestly, I haven’t scored enough since the start of the year. I have to be sharper and better at everything. That’s on me—I owe it to the team and to everyone watching.”
He didn’t want to make excuses or talk too much about what’s behind his dip in form. “I don’t think there’s an excuse. Fatigue? Most of it’s in your head. The schedule’s brutal, sure, but for me, it’s all about staying fit and being ready to help the team. That’s what matters most.”