London: Pep Guardiola suffered the largest league defeat of his managerial career as Manchester City slumped to a 4-0 loss against Everton even as Zlatan Ibrahimovic rescued United in Liverpool draw on Sunday.

COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

Romelu Lukaku and Kevin Mirallas put Everton in control at Goodison Park before teenager Tom Davies scored his first goal for the club and debutant Ademola Lookman completed the rout after coming on as an 89th minute substitute.

It was another chastening experience for City boss Guardiola, who wasn`t used to such humiliation in his trophy-laden spells at Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

The defeat was City`s fourth in their last eight league games and left them 10 points behind leaders Chelsea.

Lukaku`s 12th goal of the season continued his rich vein of form and the Belgian striker was too hot for City`s error-prone defence to handle through a torrid afternoon for Guardiola and company.

As has been the case so often this season, Lukaku`s opener in the 34th minute showed up frailties in City`s defence and goalkeeping as Davies intercepted a Gael Clichy pass just inside the visitors` half and found Mirallas sprinting into the City area.

With Yaya Toure slow to respond to the runner, and Nicolas Otamendi playing Everton on side from a deep position, Mirallas was able to pick out Lukaku, who finished with a clinical left-foot strike.

The opening goal had drawn an instant response from Guardiola`s team as Sergio Aguero came within a whisker of connecting with Kevin De Bruyne`s low cross just six yards from goal.

And Raheem Sterling, from a cleared City corner, just missed the home goal with a powerful half-volley from outside the area.

Although the game had been finally balanced, City had enjoyed the better chances, even before the opening goal.

After 11 minutes, Sterling failed with a strong penalty appeal after he went down under slight contact from goalkeeper Joel Robles as he appeared poised to score from another perfect cross from the excellent De Bruyne.And the Everton keeper was again forced into action, with a strong block to thwart David Silva as the Spaniard looked set to convert yet another decisive pass from De Bruyne.

In first half stoppage-time, City almost snatched what would have been a deserved equaliser after Clichy`s left-wing cross found Bacary Sagna whose athletic leap allows him to power a goal bound header which was nodded off the line by Davies.

Better was to come for Everton a minute into the second half when Lukaku sparked the move that led to the second goal, his through ball being touched by City defender John Stones into the path of Ross Barkley.

The England midfielder produced a superb pass for Mirallas whose equally excellent shot from 15 yards flew beyond the dive of Bravo.

As City struggled to gain a foothold, Silva`s free-kick found ex-Everton defender Stones, booed by his former supporters with every touch, who headed directly at Robles.

But for all their possession, City struggled to place Robles under pressure.

On a rare occasion that the home defence allowed Aguero too much space on the edge of their area, the Argentinian`s low shot was turned behind expertly by Robles.

Any lingering hope of a comeback evaporated in the 78th minute when Davies capped a brilliant midfield display with a deserved goal, his first for the club - the move having been started when he collected the ball in his own half.

Davies carried the ball half the length of the field, exchanged passes with Barkley and then lifted the ball over Bravo, with Lukaku ensuring the ball crept over the line.

Lookman, signed from Charlton this month, added a fourth goal in stoppage-time after Seamus Coleman had charged down a poor attempted clearance by Stones.


Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored an 84th-minute header as Manchester United prevented Liverpool from recapturing second place in the Premier League table in a 1-1 draw later in the day.

Paul Pogba stood to be United`s fall guy at Old Trafford after conceding a soft first-half penalty for handball, which James Milner converted, only for Ibrahimovic to save his blushes.

Ibrahimovic`s 19th goal of the season extended United`s unbeaten league run to seven games, but after winning the previous six, momentum has been lost.

Jose Mourinho`s side remain sixth, four points off the Champions League places, while Liverpool rose one place to third, seven points below leaders Chelsea and beneath Tottenham Hotspur on goal difference.

After draws against Sunderland and Plymouth Argyle and a defeat at Southampton, Liverpool have gone four games without victory at the start of a calendar year for the first time since 1993.

But with United five points below them, Jurgen Klopp`s men remain the more likely champions.

An abdominal injury to Nathaniel Clyne saw Liverpool`s 18-year-old right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold given a full league debut and he had the onerous task of handling the livewire Anthony Martial.

Martial scored a memorable goal against Liverpool on his United debut last season and he fashioned the first opening with a deep cross for the leaping Ibrahimovic, who could only volley wide.

Ibrahimovic gave the visiting fans a heart-in-mouth moment when he chased down Dejan Lovren`s weak back-pass, with Simon Mignolet`s clearance striking him and looping onto the roof of the net.

United appeared to be taking control and in the 19th minute Henrikh Mkhitaryan bisected the Liverpool defence with a neatly judged pass for Pogba, only for the Frenchman to scuff wide with his left foot.Liverpool`s play had been more conspicuous for misplaced passes than anything else, but errors from Phil Jones and Pogba enabled them to take the lead in the 27th minute.

Jones`s heavy touch allowed Roberto Firmino to rob him on the edge of the box, obliging Marcos Rojo to tidy up at the expense of a corner.

Pogba inexplicably leapt with his hands above his head as he defended Milner`s set-piece and the Liverpool number seven tucked the ensuing spot-kick past David de Gea for his sixth penalty of the season.

United twice threatened an equaliser before half-time, Ibrahimovic blasting a free-kick towards the bottom-left corner and Mkhitaryan taking aim from Ander Herrera`s pass, but Mignolet saved twice.

Mourinho took remedial action at the interval, sending on Wayne Rooney for his 450th league appearance and withdrawing Michael Carrick, with Herrera dropping into the holding role.

United spurned a great chance to equalise when, having robbed Alexander-Arnold on halfway, Martial sprinted into the box to meet Mkhitaryan`s low cross, only to miscue his attempt at a back-heel.

But with Carrick off, United`s back four was exposed to counter-attacks.

Divock Origi saw a shot deflected wide, a missed header by Jones allowed substitute Philippe Coutinho to slip in Firmino, obliging De Gea to block, and Georginio Wijnaldum headed Emre Can`s cross over.

It was left to Ibrahimovic to ride to United`s rescue, the Swede steering a fine header over Mignolet from Antonio Valencia`s cross after Marouane Fellaini`s header came back off the post.

The noise that Mourinho had called for after United`s mid-week League Cup semi-final first-leg win over Hull City duly arrived, but Liverpool withstood the crescendo.