Manchester City are not going away, as Jeremy Doku scored for the third time in two games and Erling Haaland recorded a goal and an assist in a 3-0 win over Brentford at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
Doku and Haaland were joined on the score sheet by second-half sub Omar Marmoush as City finished their scoring in stoppage time.
WATCH ONLINE — Manchester City v Brentford full match replay
Man City move two points back of table-topping Arsenal, who won’t kickoff at relegation-threatened West Ham United until Sunday. City also move to within a goal of Arsenal’s goal differential lead.
Brentford, meanwhile, were the leaders of a muddled mass of teams clamoring for places in Europe but they stall on 51 points and sit eight after earlier wins from Brentford (55 points) and Brighton (53 points).
Manchester City took 60 touches in Brentford’s box on Saturday, at times recalling the old Brian Regan comedy skit where he talks about being a little league baseball player and watching fielders come close enough to rifle through his pockets. Yes, City are open to the counter attack and their defense isn’t impenetrable with Ruben Dias just rejoining the bench and Josko Gvardiol still out of the lineup (Abdukodir Khusanov was also out Saturday). But they’re so good around the box and they keep the ball with venom. Most teams in the world can only hope to counter them for a win. Brentford had their chances but it always felt like City had another goal in them, even as the game danced into stoppage time. Today, they found it. And how big might that goal be come May 24?
Man City host Crystal Palace on Wednesday before a 10am ET Saturday scrap with Chelsea in the FA Cup Final at Wembley Stadium.
Brentford’s next match is also versus Palace, a 10am Sunday, May 17 kickoff.
Good win over Brentford? “They’re really tough — their transition, set pieces, the throw-ins, they created damage and we suffered in the first minutes but after that we played a really good game especially the left side in the first half, both sides in the second half. We scored Jeremy’s outstanding goal. Different second half we put more players in the box. At the end we take a good result and keep going.”
Jeremy Doku is the man of the moment: “It looks the final product already. Of course he’ll improve but he’s already had this incredible ability to dribble and to make this kind of action, he has a extraordinary, outstanding connection with Nico [O’Reilly]. But now he’s winning games. Look at Omar today. I’m so incredibly pleased because he gave us such energy.”
Hoping the pressure is on Arsenal tomorrow? “We’ll see. It’s not in our hands. We will do our job. We didn’t do perfectly at Everton. It was tough. Wednesday, Crystal Palace, another team set to play a European final. We just do our job and wait.”
Goal scorer: Jeremy Doku 61', Erling Haaland 75', Omar Marmoush 90+2'
“Feels good. Good to win 3-0.”
“We just missed the last shot on goal. We created a lot of things that were almost a chance. A lot of crosses without a shot. Brentford defended well. They’re a good team. No game in the Premier League is easy. We are happy.”
“I think it’s alright. It’s been an up-and-down season. I’m trying to do my job. Twenty-six goals is okay. It’s more than last year.”
“I haven’t thought of any other game. I’m really tired from the game I just played. How we approach it. I don’t think of any games until two days and then I try to win the next game. After that, the same. After that, the same.”
“If you play at Man City, you think of titles every single day.”
And there it is, a goal that could mean the world as City move within a goal of Arsenal’s goal differential (the Gunners would have to draw and City win again for it to matter, so there it is).
Bernardo Silva cues up a run down the left and Haaland finds Marmoush for a striker’s finish across goal.
Doku exits for Savinho.
City wouldn’t hate a goal differential boost but they’ll also be happy to deny Brentford a marker.
Doku beats Ouattara on the left and slams a cross toward the near post, where Phil Foden gets a lot of his left-footed shot.
Kelleher is at very close range and reacts so well to poke it out of play and keep the deficit 2-0.
It’s not the sexiest goal he’ll score — not by a mile — but it’ll mean as much as or more than most of them.
Semenyo drives the right and chops it toward a mass of bodies around the six.
Haaland finds the loose ball, half-tames it with a first touch and forces it — back to goal — through traffic for 2-0.
Dango Ouattara will provide more of a threat than Mikkel Damsgaard as Brentford chase an equalizer over these last 22 minutes plus stoppage, trailing 1-0.
Jeremy Doku is having a moment — or three.
The Belgian cuts onto his right foot from just inside the 18 and delivers a third pearler in one week’s time.
City are in front at the Etihad.
Phil Foden and Omar Marmoush enter the game for Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki.
They’ll have a half-hour to help City keep their Premier League title hopes alive.
Nico O’Reilly is pre-occupied with Michael Kayode, who plays a through ball onto the path of Igor Thiago.
The Brazilian has to deal with Marc Guehi but gets his shot away only for it to be blocked by Gianluigi Donnarumma and kicked out for a corner by Guehi.
City deal with the corner.
0-0, 56'.
Neither team has much reason to, unless Keith Andrews thought he could take control of the game which seems a bit absurd given the first half.
City took 15 shots in that half off 69% of the ball, putting four shots on Kelleher’s goal.
Brentford had a single touch in the City box, a single shot attempt.
How much frustration will be in City’s team room, or will they just come back out and do the same thing. The answer will be the difference in the game (obviously).
Doku wins a free kick amidst of a flurry of Man City sequences.
Most of their corner kicks are taken quick and shirt as Pep Guardiola clearly doesn’t want the Bees to rest.
Cherki hits Haaland with a free kick and Brentford soon get a respite when Semenyo can’t keep possession near the end line.
0-0, 41'.
Antoine Semenyo blazes down the right and whirs a cross toward the spot.
Erling Haaland is onto it and heads into the stooping body of Kelleher.
Crosses are the play for the Bees, who put Gianluigi Donnarumma in some discomfort and keep play for a few minutes.
But Man City are soon back in Brentford’s third.
0-0, 19'.
Brentford’s back four is going to have work to do today, as they are immediately being pressured by Jeremy Doku and Co.
Scoreless into the fifth minute but doesn’t feel like that will last.
Man City need Arsenal to slip up in order to win the Premier League title but no one should look past the parallel requirement: that City win all of its games.
Brentford, Palace, Bournemouth, and Aston Villa are all capable of doing what Everton did tactically in the 3-3 draw last time out, and City will also have to play two of those games sandwiched around the FA Cup Final.
Man City remaining fixtures, all comps
May 9 vs Brentford
May 13 vs Crystal Palace
May 16 FA Cup Final vs Chelsea
May 19 at Bournemouth
May 24 vs Aston Villa
Arsenal remaining fixtures, all comps
May 10 at West Ham United
May 17 vs Burnley
May 24 at Crystal Palace
May 30 Champions League Final vs Paris Saint-Germain
Starting XI; Kelleher, Hickey, Collins, Ajer, Kayode, Jensen, Yarmoliuk, Damshaard, Lewis-Potter, Schade, Thiago.
Subs: Valdimarsson, van den Berg, Pinnock, Henderson, Dasilva, Nelson, Ouattara, Janelt, Furo.
And here’s our answer: Ruben Dias is fit for the bench but will wait behind Nathan Ake and Marc Guehi for the time being.
Starting XI: Donnarumma, Nunes, Guehi, Ake, O’Reilly, Silva, Reijnders, Semenyo, Cherki, Doku, Haaland
Subs: Trafford, Dias, Stones, Marmoush, Kovacic, Gonzalez, Ait-Nouri, Savinho, Foden
Will we see any surprises in the City 18 or even the starting lineup?
This will — in all likelihood — see the top two scorers in the Premier League leading the lines.
Erling Haaland leads the way for City, while Igor Thiago will do the same for Brentford.
Manchester City have defensive powerhouses Ruben Dias and Josko Gvardiol back in training, though it would seem unlikely either are loaded right back into the Starting XI even if they pass fit to play.
Pep Guardiola was waiting through Friday to see whether Rodri would be fit for selection, saying he was hopeful the Spanish midfielder could play on Saturday,
Brentford should see Jordan Henderson back in the team. Rico Henry has returned to training but won’t be ready to play for at least another week.
Antoni Milambo and Fabio Carvalho continue long-term recoveries from knee injuries
This will be the third time Brentford and Man City have clashed this season, as City rode an early Erling Haaland goal to a 1-0 Premier League win at the Gtech on October 5 and then watched as Rayan Cherki and Savinho scored goals in a 20 League Cup quarterfinal win on December 17.
Brentford have only lost once since February 21, but there are plenty of draws in their 2W-5D-1L stretch since that defeat. The Bees just plasyered West Ham 3-0 at home but the draws include Wolves and Leeds.
City haven’t lost in even longer though their thrilling 3-3 draw at Everton on Monday felt a bit like defeat. Pep Guardiola’s men have won eight PL matches and drawn four times in their last dozen outings.
If you missed our Man City vs Brentford preview post during the week, head here.
Kick off time: 12:30pm ET Saturday
Venue: Etihad Stadium — Manchester
TV Channel: NBC
Streaming: Watch live on NBC.com
