Rodri delivered a sensational and decisive goal in the closing moments, securing Manchester City’s triumph over a resilient Sheffield United at Bramall Lane and propelling the reigning champions to the summit of the Premier League.
Jayden Bogle’s drilled equalizer in the 85th minute briefly seemed to grant the Blades a share of the spoils. However, just three minutes later, Spanish midfielder Rodri unleashed a powerful shot into the top left corner, clinching the victory for City. Erling Haaland had previously squandered a first-half penalty before redeeming himself by heading in the opening goal from a cross by Jack Grealish shortly after the hour mark.
Manchester City begin title defence with dominant win at Burnley
This win marked a significant milestone for Pep Guardiola, as it secured his 200th Premier League victory as City’s manager in an astonishingly rapid 269 games. This achievement set a new record for the fastest any manager has reached 200 wins in the history of the English top-flight. Despite his absence from the touchline due to ongoing recovery from back surgery, Guardiola has continued to exert his influence from a distance in recent days.
Pep Guardiola has become the quickest manager to reach 200 Premier League wins.
He did it in 53 fewer games than Sir Alex Ferguson 🤯 pic.twitter.com/rNEexGXvrQ
— ESPN UK (@ESPNUK) August 27, 2023
This is City’s first instance of winning the initial three matches of a season since Guardiola’s debut season as manager in 2016-17.
Liverpool’s Comeback:
Elsewhere, at St James’ Park, Darwin Nunez came off the bench to score two goals, orchestrating Liverpool’s remarkable 2-1 comeback victory against Newcastle United in the Premier League on Sunday. The Reds exhibited resilience after enduring the setback of losing their captain, Virgil van Dijk, who received a direct red card in the first half.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, having already been cautioned early in the match, inadvertently gifted Newcastle the lead in the 25th minute. His miscontrol allowed Anthony Gordon to seize the opportunity and calmly place the ball beyond Alisson Becker. A little over two minutes later, Van Dijk was shown a straight red card by referee John Brooks for fouling Alexander Isak right on the edge of the penalty area. This set the stage for Newcastle to potentially break their 13-game winless streak against Liverpool in the Premier League.
11 – Jürgen Klopp has now overseen 11 consecutive Premier League wins against Eddie Howe – the longest winning run in the competition's history by one manager against a specific opposing manager. Authority. pic.twitter.com/xNDszwPoKR
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 27, 2023
Despite their dominance in possession, the home team struggled to secure a conclusive advantage. However, in the 81st minute, Nunez leveled the scoreline, injecting fresh hope into Liverpool’s campaign. He replicated his feat in stoppage time, almost identically, netting a second goal that snatched the crucial three points for his team.
42 – Darwin Núñez’s 90th-minute winner was the 42nd that Liverpool have scored in the Premier League, the most by any team in the competition’s history. Chaos. pic.twitter.com/nrF8n2YoV0
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) August 27, 2023