RIYAD MAHREZ picked up the place he left off as Metropolis cruised into the final 16 with out breaking sweat.
Mahrez marked his return to the Etihad from AFCON responsibility by bagging a double – albeit the second courtesy of a fairly sizeable deflection – to proceed his glowing scoring run.
His brace made it six consecutive scoring video games at membership stage for the Algerian, on his first look in sky blue since profitable at Arsenal on New Yr’s Day.
And if that helped make it little greater than a slight step up on a coaching floor exercise…nicely that’s as a result of it was.
From the 12th minute, no less than, when Metropolis nosed right into a lead they by no means seemed like giving up – and all after Fulham had the nerve to sneak in entrance as nicely.
To be sincere, that most likely didn’t assist their trigger by tweaking the tiger’s tail due to that early purpose from Fabio Carvalho.
The Portuguese teenager would have already packed his baggage for Anfield, had Liverpool been capable of agree the price over a deadline day transfer.
As it’s, {the teenager} should wait till the summer season earlier than heading north, when he’s out of contract.
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But he earned himself just a few pre-move brownie factors on the Kop by sidefooting Fulham in entrance with a purpose Guardiola would have been proud to see his Metropolis slickers produce.
Aleks Mitrovic set the ball rolling with a sweeping cross to his proper, and Harry Wilson – himself a one-time Liverpool wannabe – delivered the right cross for Carvalho to complete.
A greater begin actually than their final Cup go to right here, once they had Tim Ream despatched off after barely 5 minutes, in a 5-0 hiding on the identical stage two years in the past.
However these hopes of claiming probably the most prized scalp in English soccer? Properly let’s simply say they kicked the hornet’s nest, as a result of inside 90 seconds Metropolis have been stage.
Phil Foden buzzed his method into the field, and when it was nicked off his toe, first Joao Cancelo from one aspect, then Riyad Mahrez from the opposite despatched balls into the field.
And from the second, Ilkay Gundogan volleyed previous Paulo Gazzaniga. Steadiness restored, Metropolis again on monitor…and after 13 minutes on the right track for the final 16.
That was courtesy of an altogether extra fundamental effort, Kevin De Bruyne curling within the excellent “end me” nook, and John Stones doing simply that by flicking a header previous Gazzaniga.
In fact with simply the one-goal benefit, Metropolis might by no means completely chill out, for all they have been hardly ever significantly troubled.
Thank Heavens, then, for his or her breathe-easy third, seven minutes after the break, which ended what few doubts there have been over the result.
It got here from the boot of Riyad Mahrez, smashing a penalty into the nook, but was all all the way down to the velocity of thought – and toes – of Jack Grealish.
When Etihad outdated boy Tosin Adarabioyo performed a lazy ball from the again, Grealish pounced and danced into the field, earlier than Joe Bryan dumped him on his bottom.
Mahrez did the remainder – and helped himself to a second 5 minutes later, after one other shoot-yourself-in-the-foot second by Fulham.
This time Harrison Reed was the perpetrator when his misplaced cross despatched De Bruyne scooting clear, and the Cottagers backline out of place to a person.
For a person who can ship an eye-of-the-needle cross, discovering an unmarked Mahrez with ten yards of house both aspect of him was child’s stuff for De Bruyne.
And though the Algerian made something however the cleanest of contact together with his shot, which additionally took a deflection off Ream, it made no distinction to its vacation spot – backside nook.
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