MANCHESTER: Manchester City reclaimed the Premier League title with three games to spare after closest challengers Manchester United lost 2-1 to Leicester on Tuesday.
Ending Liverpool’s reign as champions gives Pep Guardiola a third Premier League title in four seasons, adding to the trio of domestic titles he won at both Barcelona and Bayern Munich as coach.
And he could yet complete the season by ending his 10-year wait to win the Champions League again if City can beat Chelsea in the club’s first European Cup final.
Where once United dominated English football, now City are the force with five titles in 10 seasons since first lifting the Premier League trophy in 2012.
It was the influx of Abu Dhabi investment from 2008 that transformed a City side that was playing in the third tier until 1999 and whose only previous English titles were in 1937 and 1968.
It was Caglar Soyuncu’s header that clinched the victory for Leicester that ended United’s faint hopes of catching its neighbor.
City have built up an unassailable 10-point lead in the league and added a second trophy of the season to the League Cup won last month.
In a congested pandemic-impacted season that stretched the resources of teams, City were eight points from the lead in November languishing in 11th place after eight games. But Guardiola turned City’s campaign around.
“This has been a season and a Premier League title like no other — this was the hardest one,” Guardiola said in a statement. “To come through this season — with all the restrictions and difficulties we’ve faced — and show the consistency we have is remarkable. It is relentless. Every single day, they are there, fighting for success, trying always to be better. They have been so, so resilient.”
Unlike last season when Liverpool ended a 30-year title drought, 10,000 fans will be able to see City collect the trophy after the final game of the Premier League season against Everton on May 23 at the Etihad Stadium.
“We have missed the fans so much,” City captain Fernandinho said. “We wanted to do this for them. We will enjoy this moment and we hope the fans do too. Rest assured we will continue to do everything we can to bring the Champions League home this season.”
Manchester City clinch third Premier League title in four seasons
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Manchester City clinch third Premier League title in four seasons
- Ending Liverpool's reign as champions gives Pep Guardiola a third Premier League title in four seasons
- “This has been a season and a Premier League title like no other — this was the hardest one," Guardiola said
NEOM concede at the death for the second week in a row as Al-Taawoun salvage late draw
- NEOM narrowly lost to Al-Nassr 1-0 last weekend after Mohamed Simakan scored an injury-time winner
- Al-Taawoun followed up with a late equalizer by Mohammed Al-Kuwaykibi to deny them three points
RIYADH: The Saudi Pro League returned for Matchday 26, with the table beginning to take its final shape as the season enters its final quarter. The title contenders kick off on Friday and Saturday, but Thursday’s action focused on a clash between upper mid-table sides NEOM and Al-Taawoun, alongside three relegation-battlers — Al-Najma, Damac and Al-Kholood — attempting to improve their standings.
In Tabuk, NEOM played out a 2-2 draw with Al-Taawoun, this season’s surprise package under the returning Pericles Chamusca. After a brilliant start to the campaign that saw them spend much of the season in the top four, a poor run of just one win in their last eight games has followed.
Al-Taawoun’s late equaliser was vital in their bid to maintain a spot in the top five. With Al-Ittihad lurking just three points behind and yet to play this weekend, every point matters for the Wolves of Qassim. Regardless, it has become a painful second half of the season for Chamusca’s side, as they now sit 12 points behind the top four.
After a heroic performance from Luis Maximiano against Al-Nassr last weekend, NEOM were unfortunate to leave Riyadh empty-handed after conceding at the death. There were still plenty of positives from the defeat, as Christophe Galtier’s squad appear to have finally hit second gear this season.
Calm and collected against Al-Nassr, they repeated the same approach against Al-Taawoun. Knowing their opponents thrive on space in the transition, NEOM prevented them from accessing wingers Marin Petkov and Biel, leaving star striker Roger Martinez isolated for most of the match.
Amadou Koné and Abdoulaye Doucouré did their part to disrupt the centre of Al-Taawoun’s block, with the former driving forward and the latter drifting in between the lines to create the opener. In the 23rd minute, Al-Taawoun’s defence were pulled apart as Luciano Rodríguez met Doucouré’s precise through ball to slot home.
NEOM maintained their composure throughout the match, but it took a wonder strike from Martinez to bring the visitors level in the 70th minute, the Colombian producing a superb strike from distance.
It only took six minutes for NEOM to respond. Saïd Benrahma broke down the Al-Taawoun defence once again, releasing Alexandre Lacazette for a powerful finish to restore the hosts’ lead.
Despite the strong performance from NEOM, they ultimately fell victim to another late setback. Substitute Mohammed Al-Kuwaykibi surged down the flank in stoppage time before cutting inside and curling a precise finesse shot beyond Maximiano to salvage a point.
Elsewhere, Damac continued their resurgence under Fabio Carrille with a 3-1 victory over Al-Najma, who remain rooted to the bottom of the table. The win moves Damac six points clear of Al-Riyadh in the relegation zone, while Al-Najma sit 14 points from safety with eight matches remaining.
Meanwhile, Al-Hazem secured a late victory after Abdulaziz Al-Dwehe netted an 86th-minute winner in a 2-1 triumph over Al-Kholood. It was a frustrating night for the Saudi Pro League’s all-time leading scorer Omar Al-Somah, who missed a penalty for the winners in the 60th minute.
Saudi Pro League action resumes on Friday, with Al-Fayha hosting Al-Ettifaq and Al-Riyadh welcoming Al-Ittihad at 10:00pm. The headline fixture of the evening — kicking off at the same time — sees second-placed Al-Ahli travel to face fourth-placed Al-Qadsiah. Victory for Al-Ahli against tough opposition would strengthen their title push, while defeat for Al-Qadsiah could effectively end their unlikely championship hopes.
