Mateo Kovacic's first Premier League double earned Manchester City a comeback win as they beat Fulham 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium to maintain the pressure on leaders Liverpool.
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The former Chelsea midfielder struck either side of half-time, with Jeremy Doku also on target, to give Pep Guardiola's side their first win in three matches in the Premier League and move to one point behind Liverpool, who beat Crystal Palace earlier on Saturday.
City fell behind midway through the first half when Andreas Pereira volleyed in from close range, but Fulham passed up further chances to add to their lead.
Kovacic's goals and a clinching third from Doku ultimately made the visitors pay for their wastefulness, although substitute Rodrigo Muniz set up a nervy finish for the champions when he scored with two minutes to play.
City held on to stay second and move on to 17 points while Fulham drop to seventh on 11 points, behind sixth-placed Newcastle United.
| Position Pos | Club | Played Pl | GD | Points Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Liverpool
LIV
|
16 | +21 | 39 |
| 2 |
Chelsea
CHE
|
17 | +18 | 35 |
| 3 |
Arsenal
ARS
|
17 | +18 | 33 |
| 4 |
Nott'm Forest
NFO
|
17 | +4 | 31 |
| 5 |
Bournemouth
BOU
|
17 | +6 | 28 |
How the match unfolded
Fulham gave Man City an early warning as Adama Traore was denied by Ederson following a swift counter, and the visitors broke the deadlock after 26 minutes when Raul Jimenez's clever backheel flick into the six-yard box was volleyed in by Pereira.
Traore squandered a great opportunity to double Fulham's lead when he fired over from close range, and City took advantage of their reprieve to level in the 32nd minute when a corner broke kindly for Kovacic, whose strike deflected in via Joachim Andersen.
Kovacic completed the turnaround within two minutes of the second half, receiving Bernardo Silva's pass before sweeping past Bernd Leno.
Fulham refused to lie down, though, and once again Traore raced away, only to be denied by Ederson.
City grabbed what proved to be the vital third goal with eight minutes remaining as Doku cut inside from the left before rifling beyond Leno from the edge of the box, even if Muniz's subsequent deflected effort ensured a tense conclusion.
City return to winning ways
After back-to-back draws, City knew further dropped points here would allow Liverpool breathing space at the Premier League summit, with the Reds having briefly established a four-point cushion with a 1-0 win at Palace.
And City's 49-match unbeaten home run in all competitions appeared under threat when Pereira broke the deadlock following a neatly worked Fulham move.
But after Traore missed the target when he should have made it two, the hosts quickly regained control and restored parity before the break, before edging their noses in front soon after the restart.
Kovacic was the unlikely City hero as he took his goal tally for the season to three, already his best return in a single Premier League campaign.
While the margin of victory was not quite so comfortable in the end, Guardiola and his side can at least head into the international break hot on Liverpool's tails in the title race.
Wasteful Fulham made to pay
Although they gave a hugely positive account of themselves, Fulham will definitely depart the Etihad with a sense of what might have been.
Indeed, but for profligate finishing, the Cottagers could have moved level on points with City after a superb run of form lifted them into the top half of the Premier League table.
Fulham always looked dangerous going forward, fashioning chances worth an Expected Goals (xG) of 2.4, and the breakthrough strike was a stylish one as Jimenez's clever backheel set up Pereira.
But Traore was particularly wasteful, and after firing over at 1-0, he missed another big chance when the visitors were 2-1 down, sprinting away from substitute Kyle Walker but failing to beat Ederson.
Even with those setbacks, Marco Silva's side stayed in the match with the late goal from Muniz, but they did not quite have enough to rescue a point and fell to their first defeat since losing at Manchester United on the opening day.
Club reports
Man City report | Fulham report
What managers said
Pep Guardiola: "It was intense, it was tight, chances for them, chances for us. We started well and created many chances and it was tougher when they went to five at the back. It was a risk to manage it but in the end we did."
Marco Silva: "We scored the 1-0 goal, and then they got lucky with the deflection to equalise, but before that we had a chance with Adama [Traore] to make it 2-0. The impact of a second goal in that moment would be big."
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Key facts
Man City have equalled their longest unbeaten run in league football (30 matches – won 24, drawn six), previously doing so in January 2018.
Fulham have lost each of their last 14 Premier League matches against Man City; it’s the joint-longest run of successive defeats against an opponent in the competition’s history, along with AFC Bournemouth against Man City.
Seven of Pereira’s 10 Premier League goals have come away from home, including each of his last four for Fulham.
Walker made his 400th Premier League appearance against Fulham (202 with Man City, 183 with Tottenham Hotspur and 15 with Aston Villa), with today his 257th win, the joint-most by any player after 400 matches along with Petr Cech.
