Manchester City was in an emotional distance from securing a place in the Champions League next season after beating Bournemouth 3-1 at Etihad on Tuesday.
Omar Marmoush (14′) and Bernardo Silva (38′) scored two goals in the break. City Mateo Kovasic (67′) and Bournemouth Louis Cook (73′) were then marched orders for a red card crime, with the remaining 90 minutes of Nico Gonzalez scored another goal for the city, and after Barnmouth replacement Daniel Jabson stopped Choli, a team of 10 men left before Nico Gonzalez was appointed among the remaining 90 people.
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The city’s boss pep Guardiola was nothing but the John Stones.
Reuben Diaz and Manuel Akanji were paired in front of Adason Moraes in goal, with Mattous Nunes on the right and Josco Gvaldior on the left. The two deeper midfield roles were left to Ilcay Gandogan and Mateo Kovacic, with the trio of Bernardo Silva, Kevin de Bruni and Omar Marmash playing behind Erling Haaland in the offense.
Meanwhile, Andoni Iraora from the away dugout had to do it without Ryan Christie, Dango Outtara, Louis Sinisterra and Enes.
Kepa Arrizabalaga scored a goal and Real Madrid-bound Dean Huijsen joined Iliaza Barigny in the centre of the defense, while Julian Araujo and Liverpool target Milos Querquez joined the defensive flank. Louis Cook and Tyler Adams paired up in the middle of the park, with Antoine Cemento, Justin Kruibert and Marcus Tavernier supporting striker Evanilson.
Match Summary
Visitors were actually the first to threaten them. A rather excessive moment from Dias allowed Kluivert to box and shoot, so the angles were not optimal for Bournemouth attackers, and Edason dealt with it easily.
The first dangerous moment in the city came from Kovacic. The explosion from the outside of the box just drips wide, then de Bruin’s fantastic pass forced a great moment from the Bournemouth Keeper.
However, as his defenders slowly backed up and Marmash allowed plenty of space between the middle of the pitch and their boxes, Kepa had nothing to do to save his team in the 14th minute. The Egyptians eventually took advantage of this opportunity to fire rockets straight into the upper corner, sending the city ahead.
Haaland scored another goal after eight minutes, trying to produce some acrobatics to get De Bruyne Cross into the net, and De Bruyne produced one of the worst mistakes of the Premier League season, hitting two or three yards of crossbars as Marmoush hit a Low Cross over a six-yard box. The city was almost punished for that in the 33rd minute, and Tavernier ran left and squared it for Evanilson.
However, five minutes later, the host corrected the mistake as an offensive move in the trademark city.
In the final minute of the first half, Kepa showed his quality once again by making a double save to deny the nasty long-range shots from De Bruin and Gundogan. Bournemouth had a last chance before the break, but Kruivert couldn’t keep it low enough from inside the box.
Nunes and De Bruyne threatened again early in the second half, and Marmoush wasn’t as accurate as 14 minutes, making another foray from afar, as Brooks and Semenyo did on the other end.
However, in the 67th minute, things threatened to change dramatically when Evanilsson entered the back of Kovasic and Croatia International pulled slightly from behind. It was enough to take down the Bournemouth striker as Edason’s last man before, and judge Thomas Bramal didn’t hesitate as his hands went into the back pocket and flashed the red card.
However, the controversy at that particular moment was temporarily forgotten after two minutes. City’s substitute Nico Gonzalez stepped onto the touchline and praised Kevin De Bruin as the home fans stood up and set off.
Cherry would certainly have seen a chance to go back to the contest and return to the man, but the chef quickly shattered those hopes with a flying tackle that caught Gonzalez in the ankle and guaranteed another straight red card.
The 83rd minute created yet another emotional moment for the home crowd. Guardiola has withdrawn Haaland from the game to establish more control over the game’s flow. It’s time for Rodri to return from an ACL injury that has been shaping the season.
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Bournemouth was still spending more time on the opposition than before, but they were mostly punished when Marmoush ran into the back of the defense to catch Kepa in the 87th minute, but instead of going to the goal, the City attacker tried to get Bournemouth’s “keeper out.” Kepa was aware of his intentions like Bramall. No foul was given as Marmoush hit Kepa, losing speed and Zabarnyi quietly allowed the ball to be collected.
However, two minutes later, a similar situation occurred, as Nunes released Gonzalez. The pass took three defenders out of the game, and the alternative midfielder claimed a goal before scoring City’s third goal past Kepa.
And then, at the sixth and final minute of downtime, Nunes changed from supporting his teammates to supporting his opponents. His back pass to Diaz was intercepted by Daniel Javison, who tried, but there was nothing Ederson could do to prevent Bournemouth’s alternative striker from regaining goals.
But it was clearly too late to affect the outcome of the match.
Kevin de Bruyne – The end of the era
The evening was ultimately the one of city captain Kevin De Bruin, who played an emotional farewell match at Etihad Stadium after a decade of glittering spells with the Sky Blues. He is now joined the club legendary, celebrating with murals, along with Yaya Tule, Joe Hart, David Silva, Vincent Company, Sergio Aguero, Fernandinho and Ilcay Gandogan.
However, the Belgian endured a dazzling mistake in the first half, crossing the Marmash intersection from close range from under the bar, then clutching his head unbelieving.
“I said I just had to be there, that’s going to come,” De Bruin said of the mistake. “It’s terrible. There’s no excuse. My son will be very strict with me today.”
De Bruyne hugged his teammates and went on a standing ovation in the 69th minute, staying on the pitch, waving in congratulations while the tribute video for “King Kev” was played at the stadium.
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Since arriving in 2015, De Bruyne has collected 16 trophies with City, including six Premier League titles and the 2023 Champions League Crown. In 421 matches for the club in all competitions, he scored a total of 108 goals, producing a whopping 177 assists.
Hailed as one of the greatest midfielders in the Premier League, Belgium has helped to dominate the city under Guardiola, although the recent season has been undermined by injuries. Still, the 33-year-old confesses she was surprised she hasn’t received a new deal from City and thinks she can continue playing in the Premier League.
De Bruin was a Liverpool fan as a boy and his connection to the club that won the city’s crown in the Premier League is not surprising, but honestly, it doesn’t make much sense for Liverpool to make that move. Merseysiders already face the prospect of replacing Mohamed Salah and Virgil Van Dijk relatively quickly, and what is finally needed is another Twilight star of his career.
Red Card – Hard but Correct Decisions
Neither City nor Bournemouth could have found objective reasons to complain about the red cards awarded to Kovacic and Cook, but both decisions may seem a bit harsh at first glance.
Kovacic did not defeat Evanilson accurately. The Bournemouth striker went down fairly easily, possibly able to stay on his feet, continued running and possibly scored. But everyone could see as he pulled his arm from behind the city’s midfielder. It’s a foul by the last man who denied an obvious opportunity for scoring. So it’s a red card. When Bramall blew his whi, there was no course he took other than sending Kovacic.
As for Cook’s challenge at Gonzalez, his feet first reached the ball, but the follow-through made contact between stud and unco, a charge tackle with excessive force that could have injured his opponent. There was a serious foul play element out there, and like Kovacic, Bramall’s call was absolutely right.
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The meaning of the table
This game meant little to Bournemouth. Sitting in 11th place with 53 points, Cherry didn’t want to compete in Europe. For them, defeat had no effect.
Meanwhile, it was a key victory for City. They now come in third ahead of the final round past Newcastle and qualified for the Champions League. They will have to pay Fulham points in the final round to be safe, but defeat will leave the door open for Newcastle, Chelsea and Aston Villa.
Newcastle host Everton, Chelsea travels to Nottingham Forest, while Aston Villa heads to Europa League finalist Manchester United. Everton doesn’t play much on Sundays. However, Forest is hoping to sit in seventh place and still have a faint Champions League with just a few more points than the previous three teams.
Despite the long settling of titles and relegation, the final day of the Premier League season is exciting.
