Mateo Kovacic’s brace helped Manchester City keep pace at the top of the Premier League in a nervy 3-2 win over Fulham at the Etihad Stadium.
The Cottagers looked sharp and went ahead through Andreas Pereira, but the Croatia international struck either side of half-time to turn the game on its head.
Rodrigo Muniz set up an anxious finish after Jeremy Doku had added a third for the hosts, but City eventually got over the line to stay a point behind leaders Liverpool going into the October international break.
How the game unfolded
Following their win in the Champions League at Slovan Bratislava, City took to the Etihad turf knowing a victory was required to stay within touching distance of Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table after the Reds won at Crystal Palace.
Pep Guardiola’s side settled into a nice early rhythm, with both Ilkay Gundogan and Erling Haaland shooting wide of Bernd Leno’s goal.
However, while Fulham accepted their role as defensive underdogs, they still showed their attacking teeth in the final third. Adama Traore’s pace proved too much for Rico Lewis as he latched onto a counter-attack, but Ederson quickly closed down the angle and denied the former Wolves flier.
Gundogan netted his first City goal since returning from Barcelona in midweek but appeared to have left his shooting boots at home on Saturday, passing up another chance as his late run into the box saw him head Bernardo Silva’s cross wide.
Shortly after that spurned opportunity, Fulham struck.
A beautiful team move from the Cottagers saw Alex Iwobi fire into Raul Jimenez, whose lofted back-heel fell perfectly evaded Manuel Akanji and straight to Pereira. The former Manchester United midfielder tapped in from close range, though his side’s lead didn’t last for long.
City’s pressure remained consistent and eventually they grabbed the equaliser. A corner wasn’t effectively cleared and fell to Kovacic, whose deflected effort sailed beyond the helpless Leno and into the net.
The hosts may have headed into half-time in the lead had Silva’s header snuck into the far corner, but a fast start to the second 45 minutes ensured the miss wasn’t a costly one.
It was Kovacic who bagged his second, waltzing onto Silva’s pass and whipping a shot across Leno and into the far corner from the edge of the penalty area.
After substitutions for both sides, there was a collector’s item as replacement Kyle Walker was done for speed by Traore. However, a familiar problem cost the winger again as his finish failed to find a way past Ederson.
Substitute Doku seemed to have put the gloss on a City victory when he cut in and smashed home his side’s third, but an 88th-minute strike from Muniz brought the score back to 3-2 for a nervy period of stoppage time.
However, City held on to secure the victory, leaving Fulham to regret the chances they passed up at the Etihad.
GK: Ederson – 7/10 – Was needed to make some smart saves from decent Fulham counter-attacks.
RB: Rico Lewis – 6/10 – Showed awesome technique throughout the game but was also guilty of losing possession too easily on a few too many occasions. Got an assist for Doku’s strike.
CB: Manuel Akanji – 6/10 – Caught out by Jimenez’s cute flick which allowed Pereira to strike. Otherwise performed well enough before his withdrawal.
CB: Ruben Dias – 6/10 – Misplaced few of his passes and coped decently in the face of Fulham’s pacy attackers.
LB: Josko Gvardiol – 7/10 – Distributed the ball well and rarely came out of a one-on-one duel on the losing side.
DM: Mateo Kovacic – 9/10 – The Croatian’s first was deflected and a little fortuitous, but his second was smartly taken and well deserved. Doesn’t offer the protection and safety Rodri does but few others in world football do.
RW: Bernardo Silva – 7/10 – Always used the ball smartly and might have had a goal on another day. Grabbed the assist for Kovacic’s second.
AM: Phil Foden – 6/10 – Buzzed around brightly and his cross eventually led to Kovacic putting City ahead.
AM: Ilkay Gundogan – 5/10 – Missed a few good opportunities that he created with his late runs into the box.
LW: Jack Grealish – 5/10 – Was always looking to probe and dribble, though his final end product was usually lacking.
ST: Erling Haaland – 5/10 – A more subdued afternoon for the big Norwegian than he might have expected. Couldn’t hit the back of the net and looked a little isolated at points.
Substitutes
SUB: Kyle Walker (62′ for Akanji) – 5/10
SUB: Jeremy Doku (62′ for Grealish) – 7/10 – Showed great feet to dart inside and fire in what turned out to be the winner.
SUB: John Stones (78′ for Foden) – N/A
SUB: Matheus Nunes (89′ for Gundogan) – N/A
Subs not used: Scott Carson (GK), Stefan Ortega (GK), James McAtee, Savinho.
Manager
Pep Guardiola – 6/10 – His side still seem a little unbalanced without Rodri and could have been made to pay for it on another day.
GK: Bernd Leno – 5/10 – Made some saves from opportunities that should have been finished off by City’s attackers. His long punts forward were often inaccurate.
RB: Alex Iwobi – 6/10 – The Nigeria international’s running and forward-thinking showed Fulham wanted a positive result. Dribbled well and got stuck in defensively out wide.
CB: Kenny Tete – 5/10 – Tried some rugged tactics in defence and was part of an admirable effort at the back from the visitors.
CB: Joachim Andersen – 4/10 – A bit too careless on the ball and was probably the weakest performing Fulham defender on the day.
CB: Calvin Bassey – 5/10 – Always tried to play forward, making five passes into the attacking third, but got booked for being too enthusiastic at the back.
LB: Antonee Robinson – 6/10 – Showed tireless running to help in attack on top of his defensive duties.
RW: Andreas Pereira – 7/10 – Ghosted into the box to great effect, latching onto Jimenez’s flick to finish. Didn’t get involved as much as he would have liked apart from that but still linked up well here and there.
CM: Sander Berge – 5/10 – Did his job of making things stodgy in midfield but offered little else.
CM: Sasa Lukic – 5/10 – Also tried to be combative in the middle and wasn’t too wasteful in possession.
LW: Adama Troare – 6/10 – Has dominated at the Etihad before and had the chances Fulham needed to get a positive result. However, he couldn’t take advantage at crucial times.
ST: Raul Jimenez – 6/10 – Had the awareness to pick out Pereira with an audacious back-heel, adding an assist to his three league goals so far this season.
Substitutes
SUB: Emile Smith Rowe (65′ for Pereira) – 6/10
SUB: Tom Cairney (65′ for Berge) – 5/10
SUB: Reiss Nelson (77′ for Iwobi) – 7/10
SUB: Rodrigo Muniz (77′ for Jimenez) – 7/10
SUB: Timothy Castagne (77′ for Tete) – N/A
Subs not used: Steven-Andreas Benda (GK), Issa Diop, Harrison Reed, Harry Wilson.
Manager
Marco Silva – 6/10 – His side stayed in the game for large periods and will have been disappointed not to have made more of their opportunities.
Player of the match – Mateo Kovacic (Man City)
READ THE LATEST PREMIER LEAGUE NEWS, RUMOURS & GOSSIP
