Manchester City are back into the Premier League’s top-four after Erling Haaland scored the only goal to snap Tottenham Hotspur’s three-game winning streak and avenge two defeats earlier this season on Wednesday.
WATCH – Spurs vs Man City full match replay
Pep Guardiola’s side (47 points) is now three points clear for (what we presume will be) a place in next season’s UEFA Champions League with 6th-place Newcastle losing to Liverpool at Anfield. Spurs (33 points), meanwhile, fall one place to 13th after Crystal Palace hammered Aston Villa on Tuesday.
Ange Postecoglou elected to rest Heung-min Son, Dejan Kulusevski and Djed Spence despite the trio starring in recent weeks and having eight days to prepare for their next game, away to AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League. It was a diabolical first-half display from Spurs, who could hardly get the ball out of their own half, let alone connect a pass in the final third.
It was a completely different story immediately after halftime, though, as Man City once again looked like throwing away a lead they had done so well to build. The introduction of the aforementioned trio only added fuel to the fire, but Spurs were unable to convert their chances without a center forward who knows his way around the penalty area. Set pieces were their best course of action, but Ederson made a few fine saves to deny Kevin Danso and Rodrigo Bentancur. Haaland thought he had put the game to bed late in stoppage time, but he was deemed to have controlled the ball with his arm during the build-up. Pape Matar Sarr had a free header from nine yards out just seconds later, but he put it over the crossbar with the game’s final meaningful act.
A missed opportunity, in a game full of them
This was the youngest starting XI by average age (23.2 years old) that Postecoglou has named in his time as Spurs boss, with the front three of Brennan Johnson, Wilson Odobert and Mathys Tel (20.7) coming in well under the team as a whole — and it really showed. If ever there was a time to throw caution to the wind and go at a world-beating side like City, this would have been it — especially without another game to play for eight days. Instead, City took a stroll down Easy Street in the first half and should have been 3-0 ahead at the break — it was the worst 45 minutes of Spurs’ season, and it didn’t have to be this time. We saw in the second half just how beatable City are right now, and Postecoglou’s team selection seemed to say he wasn’t interested in taking advantage of it.
Player ratings - Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester City
What’s next?
- Manchester City vs Plymouth Argyle — Saturday, 12:45 pm ET (FA Cup)
- AZ Alkmaar vs Tottenham Hotspur — Thursday, March 6, 12:45 pm ET (Europa League)
- Nottingham Forest vs Manchester City — Saturday, March 8, 7:30 am ET (next PL fixture)
- Tottenham Hotspur vs Bournemouth — Sunday, March 9, 10 am ET (next PL fixture)
How to watch Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester City live, stream link and start time
Kick off time: 2:30pm ET Wednesday (February 26)
Venue: Tottenham Hotspur Stadium -- London
TV Channel: Peacock
Streaming: Premier League on Peacock
Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester City live updates - by Andy Edwards
Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester City final score: 0-1
Goalscorers: Erling Haaland (12')
HALFTIME! How are Spurs only 1-0 down?
Savinho should have made it 2-0, Haaland probably should have made it 3-0, and somehow Spurs are just one moment away from being back in this game. Late collapses have been one of the stories of City’s season, so we’ll see how they handle the second half. Heung-min Son and Dejan Kulusevski should probably come on at halftime, as the entire front-three struggled mightily in the first half — take your pick of who should come off.
MISS! Savinho puts it over the bar after Doku gets free down the right again (28')
Jeremy Doku has all the time and space he could want every time he gets on the ball, and he’s making the most of it. Perhaps Djed Spence would have held up better defensively than Pedro Porro has thus far.
GOAL! Spurs 0-1 Man City: Doku finds Haaland at the near post (12')
Tottenham Hotspur starting lineup
Vicario - Porro, Gray, Danso, Udogie - Bentancur, Bergvall, Maddison - Johnson, Odobert, Tel
Manchester City starting lineup
Ederson - Nunes, Khusanov, Dias, Gvardiol - Gonzalez, Kovacic, Savinho, Doku, Marmoush, Haaland
That is what you always get from Ange Postecoglou’s side and they’ve turned the corner in a big way after three-straight wins in the Premier League. They hammered Ipswich Town 4-1 at the weekend and with Spurs it’s very simple: when they have most of their key players fit they’re a very good team. Spurs may not qualify for the Champions League through a late-season surge towards fifth-place, but they have a real chance of making it by winning the Europa League.
Manchester City huffed and puffed against Liverpool on Sunday but lost 2-0, so they’ll be feeling a bit down in the dumps. Still, Pep Guardiola’s new signings are looking good and they’re generally heading in the right direction. A top five finish (the Premier League’s fifth-team is very likely to qualify for the Champions League) is looking achievable and if Guardiola’s side can pull that off and win the FA Cup, they will have salvaged plenty from this injury-hit season as they remain mid-rebuild.
Tottenham Hotspur team news, focus
It’s a real luxury for Spurs to have plenty of depth on their bench and look at the difference it is making. Vicario back in goal and Udogie back at left back is huge and has calmed things down in defense, while Son, Johnson and Kulusevski look fresh and are firing on all cylinders. New signings Dano and Tel have also settled in well and after a tough few months things are heading in the right direction for Spurs.
OUT: Richarlison (lower leg), Micky van de Ven (fitness), Radu Dragusin (torn ACL - out for season), Dominic Solanke (knee - MORE), Cristian Romero (quad), Ben Davies (unknown)
Manchester City team news, focus
Obviously City missed the injured Erling Haaland up top against Liverpool but Marmoush is looking sharp and has settled in well. So have fellow new signings Khusanov and Gonzalez as Guardiola believes City have a bright future with these young players leading the way. Defensively City still have issues, especially at right back. We could see the likes of Dias, Grealish and Kovacic rotated into the lineup after an intense game against Liverpool on Sunday.
OUT: John Stones (thigh), Rodri (torn ACL - MORE), Manuel Akanji (muscular) | QUESTIONABLE: Erling Haaland (knee), Oscar Bobb (fitness)
Tottenham Hotspur vs Manchester City prediction
As we mentioned, both teams will go for it so expect plenty of goals and another end-to-end encounter. Tottenham Hotspur 2-2 Manchester City.
