TEN memorable moments from Man City v Spurs

The Premier League season resumes this weekend after the international break, and Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur's meeting is the standout fixture of Matchweek 12. 

They have served up a string of thrilling encounters, especially in the time since both clubs rose to join the group of clubs challenging at the top of the table. 

Here, football writer Adrian Kajumba picks out some of the most memorable matches, individual performances and incidents from their battles during the Premier League era.

Spurs win Champions League decider - May 2010 

Both the significance of the result and an iconic post-match interview earn this match a place in Man City v Spurs folklore.

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Spurs' trip to City in the penultimate Premier League game of the 2009/10 season was effectively a decider between the two clubs for the final UEFA Champions League spot.

Peter Crouch won it with an 82nd-minute header, earning Spurs a coveted place in the competition for the first time ever.

Crouch sends Spurs into Champions League

Crouch’s goal sparked wild celebrations which included Spurs’ players tipping a bucket of water over manager Harry Redknapp during one of his television interviews. 

Redknapp laughed off his soaking on camera but was “furious” inside, feeling his players’ behaviour was “disrespectful”.  

But he insisted the incident was not the reason why winger and prank leader David Bentley only played a handful of games for Spurs after that. He also revealed in his autobiography Always Managing: “The only good news was that we auctioned the ruined suit for a leukaemia charity on radio and fetched £2,000.”

Harry Redknapp soaked by his players

Dzeko's four-goal haul - August 2011

Man City’s trip to Spurs early in 2011/12 was part of a breakout month for Edin Dzeko.

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After scoring just twice in his first 15 Premier League games following his January arrival from Wolfsburg, the start he made to his first full season showed why manager Roberto Mancini kept the faith.

It included a record-setting four-goal display for the striker in a 5-1 win at White Hart Lane made up of a perfect hat-trick scored in just 21 minutes, followed by a curling left-footed effort from outside the box.

He became the first Man City player to score four times in one Premier League game. 

Dzeko described his fourth strike as “one of my best goals for City” to cap “one of my greatest games ever”. 

Dzeko's four-goal masterclass 

After netting six goals in Man City’s first three league games of the season, he was a deserved recipient of August’s Player of the Month award. 

Balotelli’s eventful cameo - January 2012

A different Man City striker was the main talking point of the return fixture that season. 

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As often was the case with Mario Balotelli, controversy was not far away.

He replaced Dzeko in the 65th minute and packed plenty into his substitute’s cameo, only adding to the second-half chaos. 

Balotelli entered the fray just after Spurs completed a fightback from 2-0 down to make it 2-2, with all four goals coming in just nine, crazy second-half minutes. 

Balotelli was soon booked for a foul on Benoit Assou-Ekotto and then clashed with Spurs midfielder Scott Parker in an incident missed by the officials.

Spurs felt Balotelli should have been sent off - as Redknapp described it, he "backheeled him (Parker) straight in the head." But Balotelli avoided punishment and was still on the pitch to rub salt into Spurs’ wounds when he won and scored a 95th-minute penalty winner.

Aguero becomes City's top goalscorer - October 2014 

Sergio Aguero broke numerous records in his 10 seasons at Man City, including one following a four-goal haul against Spurs.

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By scoring all of Man City’s goals in a 4-1 win over their 10-man visitors, Aguero climbed to 61 goals and overtook Carlos Tevez’s tally of 58 to become the club’s leading Premier League goalscorer. 

Aguero’s one-man show came a day after his countryman and Spurs head coach Mauricio Pochettino said: "When he plays it is like classical music in my head. It’s like Mozart. It is unbelievable. He is the best striker in the world. I love Aguero.”

Pochettino would certainly not have loved watching his fellow Argentinian torment his Spurs team that day.

Aguero fires in four against Spurs 

It could even have been worse. Along with scoring two penalties, Aguero saw a third spot-kick saved by Hugo Lloris.

At the time, that prevented him becoming the fifth player to score five goals in one Premier League game. But he achieved that feat in 20 devastating minutes a year later, against Newcastle United in October 2015. 

Guardiola’s first Man City defeat - October 2016 

Pep Guardiola was making life in English football look straightforward following his arrival at Man City ahead of the 2016/17 season.

He started with six league wins from six and an 11-game unbeaten run in all competitions, which included 10 victories. Then he faced Spurs for the first time.

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It was another notable triumph for Pochettino, whose first ever win as a manager also came against Guardiola, when his Espanyol side stunned Barcelona 2-1 at the Nou Camp in 2009.

And the outcome of their first meeting in England was a sign of things to come for Guardiola against Spurs. 

Spurs are one of four clubs, along with Chelsea, Manchester United and Liverpool, to have eight wins against Guardiola, and no club has more.

Spurs' victory in first meeting with Pep

City struggle at Spurs’ new stadium - April 2019 to February 2023

As Man City chased the Treble in 2023, Guardiola was asked what his next challenge would be if they completed it.

“Score a goal against Spurs away,” he replied. “I stay because I want to beat Spurs away.” 

The tongue-in-cheek reply was a light-hearted nod to the difficulties his Man City side kept having at Spurs’ new stadium. Man City lost each of their first five visits, failing to score every single time.

It was not just one Spurs manager getting the better of Guardiola. Pochettino, Jose Mourinho (twice), Nuno Espirito Santo and Cristian Stellini - standing in for the ill Antonio Conte - all found the secret to stopping Man City.

Temporarily, Man City's troubles at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium came to an end last season with wins in the FA Cup and Premier League. 

But this season’s EFL Cup exit at Spurs suggests Man City’s problems are not quite a thing of the past just yet.

Champions League drama - April 2019 

The first of those five Man City defeats at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium - Spurs’ 1-0 win the first leg of the UEFA Champions League quarter-final - was the prelude to an astonishing second leg at the Etihad Stadium in which both sides experienced agony and ecstasy.

The tone was set in a breathless first 21 minutes which left City 3-2 up on the night and level on aggregate at 3-3.

Aguero’s 59th-minute strike then put Man City 4-3 up in the tie, before the two VAR reviews which effectively defined the game.

Fernando Llorente edged Spurs back in front on away goals after surviving a review for a potential handball.

Raheem Sterling then appeared to have broken Spurs’ hearts with what would have been his hat-trick goal in stoppage time. 

But another VAR review confirmed Aguero was offside before setting up Sterling and the goal was ruled out, crushing City’s hopes and instead making it another famous night for Spurs at the Etihad Stadium.

“It was unbelievable the way it finished,” Pochettino said of the late rollercoaster of emotions. “The disappointment was massive but they changed the decision. That is why we love football.”

Highlights of Champions League thriller 

Harry Kane’s masterclass - February 2022

Man City’s pursuit of Harry Kane was one of the transfer sagas of the summer of 2021. 

The following February, Kane chose the Etihad Stadium of all places to produce one of the most inspired individual displays of his career in a sensational reminder to Man City of what they could have had.

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With the spotlight on him due to the subplot, Kane produced a masterclass in a dramatic 3-2 Spurs win, which reignited their ultimately successful bid for a top-four finish after three successive Premier League defeats.

It was not just about his two goals. Kane led the line brilliantly and his passing, with both feet, was sublime as he showcased his full range of qualities.

Kane’s telepathic, first-time pass to Son Heung-min helped set up Dejan Kulusevski’s opening goal on his full debut. 

Kane's first goal then came at the end of a move that he started with an attempted ball over the top to Son. 

And after he had another brilliantly taken strike ruled out for offside, Kane ensured the headlines would deservedly be all about him when he headed in a 95th-minute winner.

“That was one of the best performances I have seen this season,” former Liverpool defender-Jamie Carragher said. “It was a privilege to watch. Everything he did was pure class.”

Man City 3-3 Spurs - December 2023

Ange Postecoglou’s fearless tactical approach sparked much discussion following his arrival at Spurs last summer, but after this dramatic draw he was entitled to feel fully vindicated.

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Spurs arrived at the Treble-winners following three successive Premier League defeats and decimated by injuries and suspensions, forcing Postecoglou to field a defence comprising four full-backs.

Safety-first tactics would have been understandable, except that is not Postecoglou’s way. 

Spurs rode their luck at times, like when persisting with playing out from the back and especially when referee Simon Hooper ended the final attack of the game as Man City’s Jack Grealish raced onto a through-ball.

But their admirable refusal to accept defeat helped earn Spurs a last-gasp point.

Twice they trailed, the second time after conceding a late Grealish goal that might have ended the resistance of many sides. But Postecoglou’s men kept going and were rewarded with a 90th-minute Kulusevski equaliser.

Man City 3-3 Spurs highlights

That was deserved, as was the praise they received for their part in a Premier League classic.

”When both teams want to do it, football is a nice game,” Guardiola said.

Ortega’s title-deciding save - May 2024

“He saves us – otherwise Arsenal are champions,” Guardiola said of Stefan Ortega’s one-on-one save to deny Son Heung-min last season. 

In the context of the title race, goalkeeper Ortega’s 87th-minute intervention at Spurs really was that defining.

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Man City’s visit to Spurs in their penultimate match was also their crucial game in hand. 

They arrived knowing victory would take them back into top spot, two points clear of Arsenal heading into the season’s final day. 

But following Erling Haaland’s opening goal, Spurs were presented with a huge chance to equalise in the 86th minute.

The usually reliable Son burst clean through on goal, and if he had scored to earn Spurs a draw, he would have also helped put their biggest rivals Arsenal within touching distance of a first title since 2004.

Guardiola’s reaction as Son headed goalwards, falling backwards to the ground fearing the worst, encapsulated the drama of the knife-edge moment. 

But Ortega, who replaced injured first-choice goalkeeper Ederson in the 69th minute, was Man City’s saviour, holding his nerve to defy Son against the odds.

After that huge escape, Haaland clinched Man City’s win with a late penalty, and they beat West Ham 3-1 on the final day to retain the Premier League title - their fourth in a row. 

It was nearly so different.