EPL: Man City cruise past Fulham to close gap on Arsenal

EPL: Man City cruise past Fulham to close gap on Arsenal

Manchester City eased to a 3–0 victory over Fulham on Wednesday, moving within three points of Premier League leaders Arsenal.

Pep Guardiola’s side, criticised in recent weeks for costly second-half lapses, had the contest wrapped up before the break.

Three goals in a 15-minute first-half burst from Antoine Semenyo, Nico O’Reilly and Erling Haaland sealed City’s 20th consecutive win over Fulham in all competitions.

Read Also: Guardiola warns Man City players against second-half slumps

Arsenal can restore their lead to six points when they visit Brentford on Thursday. However, the Gunners’ advantage has been cut from nine points to three in the space of four days, offering City renewed belief in their pursuit of the Premier League title.

Semenyo opened the scoring with his fifth goal since arriving from Bournemouth after Sander Berge inadvertently diverted Matheus Nunes’ cross into his path.

The Ghanaian international then turned provider, setting up O’Reilly to chip Bernd Leno at the end of a swift counter-attack.

Haaland extended the lead in first-half stoppage time and later added his first non-penalty Premier League goal since December 20, drilling into the bottom corner from outside the box in the 39th minute.

The Norwegian had admitted he needed improvement after managing just one open-play goal in his previous 13 matches.

With the points secured, Guardiola afforded Haaland a rare rest in the second half, introducing Omar Marmoush in his place.

Head of Sports at BusinessDay Media, a seasoned Digital Content Producer, and FIFA/CAF Accredited Journalist with over a decade of sports reporting.Has a deep understanding of the Nigerian and global sports landscape and skills in delivering comprehensive and insightful sports content.

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