Erling Haaland has admitted he was desperate to beat Chelsea goalkeeper Robert Sanchez after the Spaniard denied him a win last season.
In the 4-4 draw last November, Manchester City’s outstanding Norwegian striker attempted to fire a shot at Sanchez’s goal as he entered the penalty area, but was stopped by a superb reaction save to the left of the goalkeeper.
This time, however, Haaland got much closer to the goal before attempting his finish and fired past Sanchez to give City the lead.
Haaland told Sky Sports after the game: “I don’t know if you remember last year, but he did a great job of blocking me, Sanchez, and you can see he stays on the line a lot.
“That’s why I made a few extra touches, which meant (Sanchez) rushed out, and then I knew exactly what to do. I think it was a really nice goal.”
“I still remember last year and it has been bothering me for a long time. It was a perfect goal.”
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City looked comfortable enough to defend their lead for much of the rest of the game, with the exception of two attempts by Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson: the youngster was ruled offside just before half-time after thinking he had equalised, and then fired an overhead kick straight at Ederson in the second half after breaking free behind the City defence in the six-yard box.
The result was hardly in doubt until the final minutes of the game, but Mateo Kovacic secured it with a curling shot from outside the penalty area. Sanchez managed to reach the ball with his hand and should have blocked it.
Last season, City again fended off respectable competition from Arsenal to win their fourth Premier League title in a row, edging out the Gunners by just two points to finish first.
Pep Guardiola’s long-term future at the club is currently uncertain as he enters the final season of his current contract. The Catalan has not yet decided whether or not he will sign a new deal at the Etihad Stadium.
Off the pitch, meanwhile, City are battling FFP allegations that could result in a points deduction if the Premier League’s charges against them are successful on up to 115 counts.
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