Who will stop this resilient and determined Manchester City side? They have been devastating and one thing I love about this team is that they don't have to be at their best before the grind out results and they know how to silent their oppositions at the right time.
Norwich City looked like they would pose a massive threat to City in the early stages of the game but Sterling's goal did just enough to calm them down and City took charge as expected. Norwich City is fighting to beat the drop while City is trying to extend the gap over second-placed Liverpool. City did their job as Sterling's hat-trick with Phil Foden's strike were enough to keep pushing City ahead of others.
Bernardo Silva came close to opening the floodgates for City in the 5th minute after picking out his angles and with the goalkeeper clearly beaten at the near post, he was unlucky because his effort struck the crossbar instead. Gundogan should have done better 3 minutes after Zinchenko's lovely cross into the box found him. His header lacked power and precision which made it easy for the goalkeeper to gather.
Norwich City were not without chances of their own and in the 10th minute, Brandon Williams did so well to run with the ball. He managed to pick out Pukki who fired a shot at the edge of the post but it wasn't enough to stress Ederson. Another chance came in the 17th minute after an enticing cross into the box found Hanley. His well-steered header beat Ederson but not the base of the post and City would be happy to escape that.
City sensed danger and Sterling stepped up to produce a brilliant curling effort that found the back of the net with delight after the ball managed to find him from Kyle Walker's lovely cross into the box at the other end. He carefully lost his marker and drilled home his curling effort to set the ball rolling for City in the 31st minute. In the 48th minute, Foden doubled the tally after he managed to get the ball across the line and the goal-line technology confirmed the ball crossed the line after a goalmouth scramble.
Sterling got his second of the game in the 70th minute after Ruben Diaz got the ball to him across the face of the goal. It was one of the simplest goals he would ever score and he was there to get it home. Foden delivered the ball into the box at the near post for Diaz to square it back to Sterling with his header. Sterling only had to head the ball into the empty net and he did.
He got his hat-trick from the penalty spot after Delap was bundled inside the box by Hanley. The referee pointed to the spot and Sterling stepped up to take it. He missed his initial kick as the goalkeeper got a hand to it but he was on hand to get his foot on the rebound and he slotted it home to make it 4-0 and a hat-trick to himself.
It was a wonderful performance from City and the question remains, who will stop this City side now? Norwich knew this was a test too much to handle but they tried and we have come to see this City side over the years grow in influence and dominance especially when they are at the top of the log. Anything can happen in the Premier League and it would take at least a defeat to heap the pressure back on City. They might fold and they might not but one thing I've learnt from this Guardiola's men is that they rarely drop too many points when they are at the top of the table and the season is rounding up.
Thank you for your time.
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