Published 12:46 IST, December 28th 2019
Wolves deal massive blow to Manchester City's title charge with 3-2 comeback win
Manchester City were down to 10 men early in the game when Ederson was sent off after 11 minutes. Wolves battled from a two-goal deficit to register a win.
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"You're not champions anymore" were the chants emanating from the crowd at the Molineux Stadium during the dying minutes of the game against Manchester City. Pep Guardiola's side found themselves on the back foot early on when goalkeeper Ederson was sent off for a rash challenge on Wolves forward Diogo Jota. Manchester City had a healthy two-goal lead until the 54-minute mark. Wolves, however, hunted Manchester City down in the later stages of the game as they grabbed victory from the jaws of defeat with a 3-2 win at the Molineux.
Wolves muzzle Manchester City to complete league double over Pep Guardiola's side
Leicester City vs Liverpool and Wolves vs Manchester City were billed as the Boxing Day games that would shape the Premier League table for the next couple of weeks. While Liverpool registered a dominating 4-0 win at the King Power, Manchester City failed to hold on to their two-goal lead at the Molineux on Friday night. Adama Traore once again proved to be the scourge of Manchester City's troubles as the speedy winger scored one goal and set up the equaliser for Wolves on the night.
Battling back from a two-goal deficit is a feat few can boast of against Manchester City. Wolves goalkeeper Rui Patricio did his best to thwart Manchester City early on, effecting two saves from Raheem Sterling's penalties. Sterling slotted in the rebound after the penalty was instructed to be retaken. City's second goal saw Kevin De Bruyne release Raheem Sterling with bundles of space to exploit. Sterling duly slotted in City's second with a deft finish.
5 - Only Tottenham Hotspur (8) and West Ham (6) have lost more games in Premier League history having led by 2+ goals than Manchester City (5), with two of those coming under Pep Guardiola (also in April 2018 vs Man Utd). Slip. #WOLMCI pic.twitter.com/C8sQj9ygEg
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 27, 2019
Ederson's red card, however, proved to be Manchester City's undoing. Adama Traore's goal saw him beat Claudio Bravo on 55 minutes from a distance of 25 yards as his low drive settled in the Manchester City goal. Traore was largely kept quiet by Benjamin Mendy on the night. However, the former Barcelona winger once again came to the fore when he outmuscled Mendy, who dilly-dallied a clearance in the Man City box. With Mendy wrestled off. Traore set up Raul Jimenez, who scored the equaliser. Jimenez also had a hand in Wolves' winner with a clever backheel assist that set up Matt Doherty's goal. Pep Guardiola's side are now 14 points behind Liverpool, with the latter having a game in hand. Interestingly, after 18 games, this is Manchester City's lowest points total (38) under Pep Guardiola. City managed 44, 52 and 39 points at this stage in the previous three seasons respectively.
12:46 IST, December 28th 2019