MANCHESTER: Manchester City’s Phil Foden and Riyad Mahrez scored two goals apiece as the hosts showed their impressive strength in depth, making eight changes but still crushing a woeful Burnley 5-0 in the Premier League at The Etihad stadium on Monday.
The result leaves second-placed City 20 points behind runaway league leaders Liverpool with eight games remaining and Juergen Klopp’s side cannot now clinch the title with a victory against Crystal Palace at Anfield on Wednesday.
If City win at Chelsea on Thursday then Liverpool could secure their first league crown in 30 years against Pep Guardiola’s side in Manchester on July 2.
On Monday, Burnley boss Sean Dyche could only name seven of the allowed nine substitutes, two of them goalkeepers, with his inexperienced bench without four regulars who have not signed contract extensions and it was a long night for the Clarets. Talented 20-year-old Foden, making just his fourth start of the season, opened the scoring in the 22nd minute, drilling a low shot from over 20 metres past keeper Nick Pope after a short-corner routine. Riyad Mahrez made it 2-0 with a superb finish, collecting a long pass from Fernandinho and then jinking past the Burnley defence before firing home.
City made it 3-0 just before the break when a VAR review ruled that Burnley’s Ben Mee had fouled Sergio Aguero inside the box and, while the Argentine striker went off injured, Mahrez converted from the spot. Burnley’s defending was then sloppy at a corner again, with Foden left free to cleverly pick out Bernardo Silva who put a ball across the face of goal for David Silva to slide home six minutes into the second half.
The outstanding Foden made it 5-0 in the 63rd minute, finishing off a sweeping counter-attack.
“I like to think that was my best game in a City shirt,” said Foden. “I am still learning every day and I am still young but I am just happy when I put a performance like that in”. Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has expressed concerns regarding striker Sergio Aguero’s injury which he picked up during the team’s Premier League clash against Burnley. “It doesn’t look good,” said Guardiola after the match as per club’s official website. “It is something in the knee. We will see tomorrow (Tuesday) and will see what he has. (Reuters)
