Will Unwin’s match report is here – time for me to say goodbye. Cheers for tuning in.
KDB speaks to Sky and says he still doesn’t know what his future looks like. He’s understated in front of the mic, just a pretty chill, likeable dude. “A lot of teammates have spoken to me and I think they’re sad also that I have to go, but sometimes it goes like this in life.”
Hmmm, can City overtake Arsenal? Guardiola’s side have bottom-of-the-table Southampton next, while Arsenal have Liverpool and Newcastle to contend with during the run-in.
Breaking news: Liverpool remain top.
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 34 | 48 | 82 |
| 2 | Arsenal | 34 | 34 | 67 |
| 3 | Man City | 35 | 24 | 64 |
| 4 | Newcastle | 34 | 21 | 62 |
| 5 | Chelsea | 34 | 19 | 60 |
| 6 | Nottm Forest | 34 | 12 | 60 |
| 7 | Aston Villa | 34 | 5 | 57 |
| 8 | Fulham | 34 | 4 | 51 |
| 9 | Brighton | 34 | 1 | 51 |
| 10 | AFC Bournemouth | 34 | 12 | 50 |
| 11 | Brentford | 34 | 8 | 49 |
| 12 | Crystal Palace | 34 | -4 | 45 |
| 13 | Wolverhampton | 35 | -11 | 41 |
| 14 | Man Utd | 34 | -8 | 39 |
| 15 | Everton | 34 | -7 | 38 |
| 16 | Tottenham Hotspur | 34 | 6 | 37 |
| 17 | West Ham | 34 | -19 | 36 |
| 18 | Ipswich | 34 | -41 | 21 |
| 19 | Leicester | 34 | -49 | 18 |
| 20 | Southampton | 34 | -55 | 11 |
A strange, rather muted game, with an end-of-term feeling to it. Kevin De Bruyne will get the attention for a winner in one of his last games for City. He’s not the conquering presence of old but his run into the area was perfectly timed, the finish calm and precise.
FULL-TIME: Manchester City 1-0 Wolves
Sá makes his way into the City area for the corner … but the ball is headed away and the whistle goes. City go third and Wolves’ winning streak comes to a close.
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90+5 min Not a thriller this one. Wolves have looked way off it this half … but suddenly there’s space on their right and they win a corner …
90+4 min Toti fouls and City have a free-kick on the right, the clock nearly up.
90+2 min Finally some danger for City to contend with as Guedes sends in a decent ball from the right … it’s booted away.
90 min Five minutes to be added on.
89 min Agbadou’s flair works against him, his lofted diagonal ball too hard to control on the Wolves left.
88 min Foden, with a first touch on the chest, is taken down by Munetsi by the halfway line.
86 min Lewis launches a mazy run on the right before pulling back for Foden inside the area but the attacking midfielder is crowded out by Wolves shirts.
85 min More changes: Cunha and Semedo are off for Hwang and Bueno.
83 min Akanji nearly makes a mess of an interception but sorts his feet out for the clearance eventually. City make three changes: Marmoush, De Bruyne and Gündogan off for Lewis, Foden and McAtee.
82 min It’s all a bit dull at the moment, with Wolves struggling to stress City out.
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80 min Bernardo Silva drops very deep to receive the ball and launch into a run before he’s fouled. André makes way for Wolves, replaced by Guedes.
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78 min Agbadou is very confident on the ball, willing to dribble out from the back. But Wolves just haven’t strung together much in this half, their one decent chance a bit of solo brilliance from Cunha.
77 min Gvardiol and Cunha both go down after a clash, the foul going City’s way.
75 min Bernardo Silva is OK, by the way. Nunes dinks a cross into the hands of Sá.
74 min The Wolves man stays on the pitch after several TV replays, perhaps a crucial moment in this game.
72 min Ooooh. Aït-Nouri’s studs go into Bernardo Silva’s shin and VAR is having a look …
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70 min Kovacic drags a low shot wide from the edge of the area.
69 min Gvardiol has moved to left-back for City, with Akanji at centre-back. The former is already looking a threat going forward.
68 min Gvardiol plays a lovely ball down the left channel to find Doku, but the move ends with a Marmoush strike that flies into the stands.
65 min City try to launch a break on their left before the ball goes off. Wolves make two changes, with Sarabia and Gomes coming on.
64 min Finally Wolves get going, the electric Aït-Nouri combining nicely with Toti Gomes on the left before winning a corner. Nothing comes from it … but Aït-Nouri, trying to dribble his way through the City backline, wins another.
63 min City have a corner, with Silva to let whip. Sá collects cleanly.
61 min Nunes has been assured out on the right against his former employers.
60 min Doku is faced with a wave of Wolves shirts when he tries to dribble and André does well to win the ball when rushing back into his area.
59 min O’Reilly makes way after an iffy start to the second half, with Akanji on for City.
56 min O’Reilly loses the ball in midfield once again to let Wolves attack … and Matheus Cunha rattles the post! It was a thumping hit from the left, just outside the area, with the in-demand forward bisecting the City shirts in front of him. Top effort.
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55 min O’Reilly has space to dance down the left but he runs into the crowd when cutting in.
54 min Marmoush is fine it seems – it didn’t look all that serious to begin with.
52 min Marmoush goes down on the right after a tussle with Toti Gomes and stays down as City continue to pass it around – it’s probably 20 or 30 seconds before play finally stops for him.
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50 min It’s been a low-key start to the second half but a Sá goalkick forces City to wake up at the back, the ball nearly breaking nicely for Munetsi to advance into shooting range.
47 min City wheel the ball around, again searching for Doku to then drift into the area.
46 min Off we go again … though Munetsi goes down after challenging for a header.
There were plenty of empty seats at the start of the game – that was due to a fan protest over the club’s ticket prices and policies.
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Wolves had a couple of serious chances during a decent first half-hour, but City have strolled around comfortably since the De Bruyne goal, their possession in the 60s.
HALF-TIME: Manchester City 1-0 Wolves
Just the one minute added on as Nunes thumps the ball over to Doku on the other wing. The ball works it way to Bernardo Silva on the right, and he tries to jink away and cross the ball. Wolves resist and then comes the whistle.
45 min It’s just pass-pass-pass from City, always looking for Doku on the left to then penetrate.
42 min De Bruyne gets in the way of another potential Wolves counter, hunting down the ball on the City left.
41 min City are now wheeling the ball around comfortably, taking the sting out of the game.
40 min De Bruyne – he’s everywhere – halts a Wolves break with a foul by the halfway line.
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37 min De Bruyne is in the game once again, trying to slide in a ball for Marmoush … but Sá intercepts, advancing well outside his area.
GOAL! Manchester City 1-0 Wolves (De Bruyne 35)
It’s been building over the last few minutes and here it is. City win the ball in midfield and the spaces open up, with Doku beating his man inside the area before pulling back for the advancing De Bruyne. The veteran connects well enough with the bobbling ball, the first-time hit giving City the lead.
Updated
33 min … O’Reilly drifts into the area and shoots over the bar but City are finally clicking.
32 min Doku crosses from the left, Toti heads away but City have now set up camp inside the Wolves half …
31 min Another low Doku pass from the City left into the area is bundled away.
30 min De Bruyne takes it short before eventually whipping it in. That’s cleared before Silva curls in a ball from the right … again the Wolves defence – a flat five out of possession – is resolute.
29 min City have a corner but it’s Wolves who have the rhythm at present.
27 min Another huge chance for Wolves! They work it nicely to leave Aït-Nouri in position to strike the post from around 10 yards. The rebound comes back out to him but he can’t beat Gvardiol on the line!
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22 min Wolves have the first clear-cut chance and they blow it. The visitors beat the high City line with Bellegarde advancing into the area from the right, the chance on to square it comfortably for a Munetsi tap-in … but he makes a meal of the pass, sending it out of reach.
21 min Sá punches away the corner before De Bruyne crosses from the left … Toti Gomes gets a head on it but Marmoush lets loose … it’s another shot off target.
20 min De Bruyne makes a tidy run into the Wolves area before crossing into the centre … the move ends with a City corner.
19 min André has a first-time hit from inside the D but a City shirt closes down on him to ensure he’s put off, and the shot flies high.
18 min It doesn’t sound all that electric at the Etihad. Toti Gomes makes a decent run down the left for Wolves before the ball is recycled, with the visitors getting the passes going in midfield.
17 min We’re lacking in thrills at the moment. Doku threatens to provide some when jinking down the left but he can’t find a teammate in the area.
13 min Nunes whips in a ball from the right but Sá, the Wolves keeper, reads the situation really well, getting himself close to the edge of the area to collect.
12 min Kovacic, who was excellent at Wembley last weekend, leaves Gomes rolling on the turf with a challenge.
11 min Never mind, it’s Bernardo Silva who crosses the ball but it doesn’t go deep enough, causing Wolves little bother.
10 min De Bruyne finds Marmoush on the City right before Matheus Nunes is tripped by the onrushing Cunha. City have a free-kick for De Bruyne to whip in …
9 min Doku cushions the ball on the left and gets City moving but a cross is dealt with and Semedo ventures down the Wolves right before winning a free-kick inside his own half.
7 min Cunha’s corner from the left heads towards the far post, and past everyone. It had some proper swing on it, one Jimmy Anderson would be proud of.
6 min Wolves finally get a proper hold of the ball after a long punt from the back; Bellegarde helps win a corner.
4 min The camera flashes to Rodri in the stands. He’s been greatly missed.
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3 min Matheus Cunha breaks free on the left and cuts in … but loses his way with the hit from outside the area, the shot wildly off target.
2 min Ederson’s pass from the back helps City cut through the Wolves lines, the move ending with Rúben Dias having a crack from around 25 yards. It’s high and rather wide.
1 min City calmly get those possession numbers up by wheeling it around at the back.
Peep!
The hosts kick things off. Let’s play!
Here’s how the reverse fixture went. City went top of the table after John Stones’ winner – it’s been a while.
Lads on tour? I think not.
“The last 15 years, my wife has been the father and the mother. I didn’t see anything. Birthdays, graduations … I have never been there. Never. I don’t want this life for my sons. We have a lot of moments where we suffer a lot. And alone. I think we are always in a pre-depression. I believe that the moments of my life gave me the opportunity to be stronger.”
Some great lines from Vítor Pereira in this piece by Ben Fisher.
Pep Guardiola speaks to Sky: “I’ve said, when I finish my time here, I don’t know, one year, two year, three years, four, five, six, I don’t know, I will take a break. I’m not retire but I’ll take a break for sure.”
That’s clarifying his comments made here:
Erling Haaland is back in the mix but on the bench – he didn’t play any games in April due to an ankle injury. Fellow Norwegian forward Jørgen Strand Larsen is not involved for Wolves; he has six goals in his last six league matches.
The teams
Manchester City: Ederson, Matheus Nunes, Rúben Dias, Gvardiol, O’Reilly, Gündogan, Kovacic, Silva, De Bruyne, Doku, Marmoush
Subs: Ortega, Haaland, Grealish, González, Akanji, Savinho, Foden, Lewis, McAtee
Wolves: José Sá, Doherty, Agbadou, Toti Gomes, Nélson Semedo, João Gomes, André, Aït-Nouri, Munetsi, Bellegarde, Matheus Cunha
Subs: Bentley, Bueno, Hwang, Rodrigo Gomes, Doyle, Sarabia, Gonçalo Guedes, Djiga, Pedro Lima
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Preamble
Hello, hello, hello and welcome to some spicy Friday night action: the most in-form team in the league against, um, Manchester City.
Yes, Wolves are on a serious run with six consecutive victories. While it’s worth noting that all of those teams sit below them in the table, it’s still clinical work. After flirting with a relegation battle, they’re safe and sound under Vítor Pereira.
For City, the good times are (sort of) rolling back. They’ve got an FA Cup final to look forward to after last weekend’s victory over Nottingham Forest, and a win tonight would take them third, causing Forest fans further grief. But a slip up from Pep’s boys would be nice for the neutrals, injecting a bit more drama into the push for Champions League spots. After Liverpool’s title march and the misery of the bottom three, let us feel something. Please.
Kick-off’s at 8pm BST. Drop me a line with your thoughts, queries, worries, existential angst, whatever. Cheers!
