Manchester City’s week is moving along sweetly, this win closing the gap to three points to Arsenal, who travel to Brentford on Thursday. On Sunday, they defeated Liverpool at Anfield, on Wednesday they downed Fulham at home to reel off a 20th consecutive victory against them.
The rosiest moment for the title challengers was Erling Haaland’s 39th‑minute strike, a first in the competition from open play in nine games, though more concerning was his removal at the break, when City led 3-0.
“Niggles,” Pep Guardiola said. “Fatigue. He said: ‘I don’t feel comfortable.’ With 3-0 and a lot of games and having Omar [Marmoush] – common sense to take him off.”
The clean sheet raises City’s goal difference to +30, two behind Arsenal. Who knows: the metric may prove the decider when the crown is handed out in May. Guardiola, though, refused to embrace City being three points behind the Gunners.
“We are not three points before they play Brentford, after that we’ll see,” he said. “It’s more important how we can be more consistent over 90 minutes. But a really good performance, one of the best. After Anfield it is important – these emotional games – the next one is always tricky.”
You had to go back to April 2009 for the last time Fulham defeated City when a Clint Dempsey double helped them to secure a 3-1 win here. Since then, the aggregate score was 53‑21 to the home team – a terrible statistic for the visitors that would plunge further.
Phil Foden, back in the league XI for the first time in five games, had a volley from outside the area deflected. Then, from inside, saw a shot saved by Bernd Leno.
In continual rain, Marco Silva bemoaned Harry Wilson going backwards along the right, but a press featuring Antoine Semenyo, Haaland, Nico O’Reilly, Foden and Rodri meant he had scant other choice.
Semenyo opened the scoring when Rodri sprayed a pass left to Matheus Nunes, he crossed, and Haaland leaped and missed, which caused Sander Berge to head towards his goal, where the forward struck for a fifth in eighth appearances.
Next came Kenny Tete pulling Semenyo’s hair as City crowded Fulham’s area. “I went to attack the corner and I just felt a tug on my hair, I let the referee know,” Semenyo said. “They checked it and said there wasn’t enough.”
Fulham’s concession of O’Reilly’s second came when Haaland stretched to feed him near halfway and was taken down by Joachim Andersen. O’Reilly found Semenyo, carried on along the left, took the return and defeated Leno. City celebrated and Andersen was booked by Paul Tierney for the challenge.
Fulham needed to steady themselves, but failed as Haaland scored. Receiving from Foden near the D a touch tipped the ball on to his left and he drilled beyond Leno.
After a misplaced Marc Guéhi header allowed Wilson to feed Emile Smith Rowe, who narrowly missed, Guardiola ended the period jumping at his side’s laxness.
In the reverse, helter-skelter fixture, City were 4-1 up by 48 minutes and ended hanging on for a 5-4 win. Could Fulham engineer something similar? No, was the answer despite there being no Haaland to contend with for the second half.
City popped the ball about but Guardiola was no happier, so Tijjani Reijnders and Abdukodir Khusanov entered for Bernardo Silva and Nunes, as Silva made a triple change – Kevin, Rodrigo Muniz and Josh King for Samuel Chukwueze, Smith Rowe and Raul Jiménez.
When Rodri, Guéhi and Khusanov combined near their goal suddenly City were upfield and Foden could release Semenyo: the move faltered but the flow here was City in their best mode.
A Foden challenge on Calvin Bassey had him booked as City sought to slow the contest and protect the lead. Helpful, too, was a Wilson corner – a rarity for Fulham – he overhit all the way over to the left.
By 70 minutes Rayan Cherki and Nico González were involved, as Guardiola freshened the legs more – Rodri and Foden making way – this after Donnarumma repelled, low, a Muniz effort.
As the game petered out, Donnarumma tipped over from King, but with 12 games left City are where Guardiola wants them: in the hunt.
Silva said: “Not good enough from us, we were not at the level and the demands of a game like this one. We didn’t play in the way we are capable of playing.”
They were, in fact, very far off what was required.
