Firstpost
  • Home
  • Video Shows
    Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports
  • World
    US News
  • Explainers
  • News
    India Opinion Cricket Tech Entertainment Sports Health Photostories
  • Asia Cup 2025
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
Trending:
  • Nepal protests
  • Nepal Protests Live
  • Vice-presidential elections
  • iPhone 17
  • IND vs PAK cricket
  • Israel-Hamas war
fp-logo
Premier League: Pep Guardiola's VAR woes continue as Manchester City suffer early setback in title defence
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter
Apple Incorporated Modi ji Justin Trudeau Trending

Sections

  • Home
  • Live TV
  • Videos
  • Shows
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Health
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • Web Stories
  • Business
  • Impact Shorts

Shows

  • Vantage
  • Firstpost America
  • Firstpost Africa
  • First Sports
  • Fast and Factual
  • Between The Lines
  • Flashback
  • Live TV

Events

  • Raisina Dialogue
  • Independence Day
  • Champions Trophy
  • Delhi Elections 2025
  • Budget 2025
  • US Elections 2024
  • Firstpost Defence Summit
  • Home
  • Sports
  • Premier League: Pep Guardiola's VAR woes continue as Manchester City suffer early setback in title defence

Premier League: Pep Guardiola's VAR woes continue as Manchester City suffer early setback in title defence

Aadi Nair • August 18, 2019, 13:34:17 IST
Whatsapp Facebook Twitter

From Moura’s goal, until the rather dramatic ending of the match, the game played out in predictable patterns, with spells of Manchester City possession ending in near-escapes and close shaves for Tottenham

Advertisement
Subscribe Join Us
Add as a preferred source on Google
Prefer
Firstpost
On
Google
Premier League: Pep Guardiola's VAR woes continue as Manchester City suffer early setback in title defence

Loath as I am to begin with a quote, there’s a particular nugget of wisdom from Yankees Hall of Famer Lefty Gomez that seems especially apt after Manchester City’s draw against Tottenham. The American is famous for having remarked that he’d ‘rather be lucky than good,’ a sentiment that has been echoed time and again in the sporting world since, and on Saturday, it was deep into extra time when Pep Guardiola’s turn came to rue his rotten luck. Everyone thought Gabriel Jesus had won the match for City when he latched onto an Aymeric Laporte flick and walloped the ball into the net through a sea of legs in the 94th minute. The fans thought it, the players thought it and Guardiola thought it. The stadium erupted in a cacophony of celebration, City fans bolstered by that particular brand of drunken elation which usually accompanies a last-gasp winner. On the flip side, Tottenham heads were hung, the wind well and truly taken out of their sails. The only person unmoved by the goal was referee Michael Oliver, who waited for confirmation from the voice in his ear. Confirmation which was not forthcoming. Confirmation which turned to denial. After failing them in their Champions League exit against Tottenham last season, VAR had once again dealt City a lousy hand. It was deja vu, in a sense. [caption id=“attachment_7181381” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] ![Gabriel Jesus remonstrates with the referees in vain. Reuters](https://images.firstpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Gabriel-Jesus-825-Reuters.jpg) Gabriel Jesus remonstrates with the referees in vain. Reuters[/caption] A replay on the Etihad Stadium’s gigantic screens made the situation a little clearer for everyone involved. The ball had grazed Laporte’s arm on it’s way to Jesus. There was no intent from the Spanish centre-back, it was hardly in the same vein as Maradona’s ‘Hand of God,’ but intent, or indeed a lack of it, was made irrelevant by a change in the rules this summer. The story of the match finally had its denouement, a good deal later than expected.  The goal was disallowed. Parity was restored, and the match ended in a 2-2 draw. But don’t let the scoreline fool you. What unfolded on Saturday was anything but level. For a majority of the 97 minutes or that were played, Manchester City were very, very good. They had a whopping 30 shots to Tottenham’s three, 10 of which were on target. The likes of Kevin de Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva made for a mesmerising watch, as City dominated the game and kept Tottenham pegged back in their own half with some top-drawer football. The first goal of the match came courtesy of Sterling, who raced onto an inch-perfect cross from De Bruyne to head in at close range. Thought it was scored relatively early, in the 20th minute, the goal had looked inevitable from the very first minute, and City were deservedly ahead. Not for long, though. [caption id=“attachment_7181461” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] ![Raheem Sterling heads past Hugo Lloris to open the scoring. Reuters](https://images.firstpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Raheem-Sterling-825-Reuters.jpg) Raheem Sterling heads past Hugo Lloris to open the scoring. Reuters[/caption] Just three minutes later, after having had not a single sniff of goal, Tottenham were level thanks to Erik Lamela. The Argentine midfielder picked up the ball just a few yards away from the centre circle, meandering his way through a sedentary City midfield before attempting a wholly unimpressive shot from distance. The strike should have been dealt with easily by Ederson, but the Brazilian goalkeeper got his positioning all wrong, and the ball rolled past his outstretched arms. City were hit by a sucker-punch of their own making and it was not to be the last of the day. After collecting themselves, City went straight back at it, ratcheting up the intensity in their pursuit for another goal. Hugo Lloris was peppered with an array of shots in the next ten minutes or so, and almost inevitably, one of them squeezed past him, facilitated once again by the peerless brilliance of a resurgent De Bruyne. The Belgian picked up the ball on the right flank, and sauntered into the Tottenham penalty area, before squaring a deft little ball to Sergio Aguero, who slotted it past the Spurs captain. City were ahead, the world felt right again, and Lamela’s equaliser was just a glitch in the simulation as the match reached half time. City began the second half with as much intensity as they did the first, seemingly looking to wrap up the three points by the hour mark. Unfortunately for them, however, Lucas Moura was to play the proverbial spanner in the works in what will probably go down as one of the most effective substitutions in the history of the Premier League. The Brazilian winger replaced Harry Winks in the 56th minute when play was stopped for a Tottenham corner. He made his way towards the City penalty area and rose above Kyle Walker to score with his very first touch of the game, just 19 seconds after coming on. It was sucker-punch numero dos.

From that point on, until the rather dramatic ending of the match, the game played out in predictable patterns, with spells of Manchester City possession ending in near-escapes and close shaves for Tottenham. Perhaps the most eventful incident of this period came in a brief but heated exchange of words between Guardiola and Aguero after the Argentine striker was replaced by Jesus in the 66th minute. While on any other day, this would have made for headline news, the pair were seen embracing towards the end of the match, and the episode will probably fade into obscurity in the shadow of VAR. [caption id=“attachment_7181641” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] ![Pep Guardiola and Sergio Aguero face off after the striker's substitution. Reuters](https://images.firstpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Pep-Guardiola-825-Reuters.jpg) Pep Guardiola and Sergio Aguero square up after the striker’s substitution. Reuters[/caption]   Guardiola was understandably peeved in his post-match interviews and bemoaned VAR's inconsistency , saying, “it happened last week with Wolves (against Leicester) and we saw for Chelsea on Wednesday — the keeper wasn’t on his line — Adrian in the penalty shoot-out. They have to fix it. The whistle inside matches now isn’t quite clear. But they believe it’s hand with Llorente in the Champions League and sometimes they don’t.” On the face of it, this probably isn’t that big of a deal for Manchester City. They can take great heart in knowing that they bossed around last season’s Champions League finalists like they were playing Sunday League, and with 36 more matches yet to come, the two points they dropped here are hardly likely to decide the title. But it is a big deal for pretty much everyone else. From the Liverpools and the Chelseas to the Burnleys and the Brightons. City are the team to beat, and even if they were just short of perfect on the night, Tottenham have shown that maybe, just maybe, if you hang in there long enough, you can get a result.

Tags
Premier League football Manchester City Tottenham KickingAround Kevin De Bruyne Pep Guardiola Raheem Sterling Lucas Moura Erik Lamela Mauricio Pochettino VAR Michael Oliver
End of Article
Written by Aadi Nair
Email

I write about highly-skilled people who chase after balls for a living. see more

Latest News
Find us on YouTube
Subscribe
End of Article

Impact Shorts

WWE SummerSlam 2025 Night 2 results: Cody Rhodes beats John Cena in wild title match

WWE SummerSlam 2025 Night 2 results: Cody Rhodes beats John Cena in wild title match

Brock Lesnar's return headlines Night Two of WWE Summerslam Cody Rhodes defeats John Cena to become the Undisputed WWE Champion Becky Lynch defeats Lyra Valkyria to stay Women’s Intercontinental Champion.

More Impact Shorts

Top Stories

Israel targets top Hamas leaders in Doha; Qatar, Iran condemn strike as violation of sovereignty

Israel targets top Hamas leaders in Doha; Qatar, Iran condemn strike as violation of sovereignty

Nepal: Oli to continue until new PM is sworn in, nation on edge as all branches of govt torched

Nepal: Oli to continue until new PM is sworn in, nation on edge as all branches of govt torched

Who is CP Radhakrishnan, India's next vice-president?

Who is CP Radhakrishnan, India's next vice-president?

Israel informed US ahead of strikes on Hamas leaders in Doha, says White House

Israel informed US ahead of strikes on Hamas leaders in Doha, says White House

Israel targets top Hamas leaders in Doha; Qatar, Iran condemn strike as violation of sovereignty

Israel targets top Hamas leaders in Doha; Qatar, Iran condemn strike as violation of sovereignty

Nepal: Oli to continue until new PM is sworn in, nation on edge as all branches of govt torched

Nepal: Oli to continue until new PM is sworn in, nation on edge as all branches of govt torched

Who is CP Radhakrishnan, India's next vice-president?

Who is CP Radhakrishnan, India's next vice-president?

Israel informed US ahead of strikes on Hamas leaders in Doha, says White House

Israel informed US ahead of strikes on Hamas leaders in Doha, says White House

Top Shows

Vantage Firstpost America Firstpost Africa First Sports
Latest News About Firstpost
Most Searched Categories
  • Web Stories
  • World
  • India
  • Explainers
  • Opinion
  • Sports
  • Cricket
  • Tech/Auto
  • Entertainment
  • IPL 2025
NETWORK18 SITES
  • News18
  • Money Control
  • CNBC TV18
  • Forbes India
  • Advertise with us
  • Sitemap
Firstpost Logo

is on YouTube

Subscribe Now

Copyright @ 2024. Firstpost - All Rights Reserved

About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Cookie Policy Terms Of Use
Home Video Shorts Live TV