Man City 2-0 Sheffield United: Rodri and Julian Alvarez help Premier League champions end 2023 in style

Manchester City ended a memorable 2023 in style with a dominant 2-0 win over Sheffield United that lifts them into third place in the Premier League.

In a game where the gulf in class was huge, City bossed possession as they recorded 82 per cent of the ball with goals courtesy of Rodri and Julian Alvarez.

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It caps a quite sensational calendar year for Pep Guardiola's side, who won five trophies, scoring 159 goals along the way in their 66 matches.

This victory leaves them perfectly positioned in the title race, just two points off Liverpool while the return of Kevin De Bruyne, who was named among the substitutes but didn't get on, only further enhances the menacing look about their prospects in 2024.

How City made it back-to-back wins...

Manchester City were in celebratory mood ahead of the match as the club paraded all their trophies won during a memorable 2023.

So, it was fitting that the man that scored their famous winning goal in the Champions League final to complete the treble opened the scoring after a dominant opening period. It was a powerhouse of a goal from Rodri as he strode through the heart of the Sheffield United midfield before producing an expertly controlled low finish that flew into the bottom corner.

Sheffield United were happy to sit deep and offered little attacking moments but William Osula did get behind the defence to meet a Jayden Bogle cross but his first-time shot was blocked by Manuel Akanji. That was as good as it got for Chris Wilder's team who were in damage limitation mode after falling behind.

In what almost felt like an exhibition game at times, the excellent Phil Foden almost got round Wes Foderingham early in the second half but the keeper just managed to claw the ball away.

Foden had better luck when he created the second goal for Alvarez on the hour, breaking into the area from an Oscar Bobb pass and squaring for the Argentina forward to slide in. The home crowd called for De Bruyne to make his return but the Belgian was kept in reserve as Guardiola resisted the urge to throw him on.

This was the first time City had secured back-to-back Premier League wins since the first week of November and ended a run of eight games without a clean sheet. Meanwhile, the Blades remain bottom of the Premier League.

Opta stats: Pass masters

• Manchester City's 938 successful passes against Sheffield United is the second-most on record in a Premier League game (since 2003-04), behind their own record of 942 against Swansea City in April 2018. Indeed, their 81.8% possession figure was their highest in a Premier League game since May 2021 against Newcastle United (82.1%).
• City have remained unbeaten at the Etihad in all competitions in 2023 (P28 W25 D3) - three of the last four instances of an English top-flight side going unbeaten in a calendar year at home have been Manchester City (2011 and 2017 also) along with Liverpool (2019).

What the managers said...

Man City boss Pep Guardiola to Sky Sports News:

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"It is always difficult, quite similar to [Crystal] Palace, in the end we finished how we finished, so maybe we learned that.

"Really pleased for the clean sheet, for a long time for the victory, it has been a tough, tough month for us, for Saudi Arabia and many things.

"Winning the World Club Cup helped us a lot in our mood, very pleased to finish there, we are not top of the league, we are not far away and two titles we have won this season, so the group of this players are amazing.

"So the mood is good, so now rest a little bit, we have a few days off now, which will be good for all of us and then we come back."

Sheff Utd boss Chris Wilder:

"Man City are an incredible team and when you walk out and see the five trophies staring at you, there's a reason. They've earned those by being the best team in the world and having the best manager in the world. We understood the challenge and we had to try and frustrate. We did but needed to be calmer in possession.

"Once you get starved of possession, when you do get it back they are so good at counter pressing. They don't give you an opportunity to breathe. They play a different sport to what everyone else plays."

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Merson: Walk in the park for City, but they must finish teams off

Analysis from Sky Sports' Paul Merson on Soccer Saturday:

"They are playing in first, second gear. They are probably one of the only teams that can consistently play and that is why in time it catches up with other teams, but with Man City they get stronger and stronger.

"Honestly, it was a walk in the park. If you are Sheff Utd, you are probably in the dressing room after thinking, 'wow, what a result at 2-0!'

"My own worry would be Foderingham was not man of the match, so to have that many touches, sometimes you have to have a reason for it, and it is alright keeping the ball and they have done enough to win the game.

"But you have to be careful - look what happened against [Crystal] Palace just a couple of weeks ago before they went away to Saudi Arabia, they have to finish teams off and be more ruthless, it catches up with you.

"So for me, a nice day at the office, and Sheff Utd come away with their stomachs tickled a little bit and then off you go."

Will Pep keep Foden as a No 10 when Haaland returns?

Analysis by Sky Sports' Richard Morgan:

"Man City once again had to do without injured top-scorer Erling Haaland against Sheffield United, meaning another opportunity for Phil Foden to play in his favoured No 10 role - and for the second game in a row, the forward delivered a man-of-the-match display in a dominant win for the champions.

"As in Wednesday night's 3-1 victory at Everton, the twinkle-toed Foden was at the heart of everything City did well, setting up both of the hosts' goals at the Etihad, while also being unlucky not to get on the scoresheet as he did at Goodison Park.

"Most impressive of all was the 23-year-old's inch-perfect ball across the six-yard box for a back-post tap in for Julian Alvarez to end the match as a contest, meaning manager Pep Guardiola now has a dilemma of whether to keep the England international in this role when Haaland returns from injury."

What's next?

Manchester City are next in action on January 7, hosting Championship side Huddersfield in the third round of the FA Cup, before returning to league commitments on January 13 with a trip to Newcastle; kick-off 5.30pm.

Sheffield United are also in third-round action when travelling to League Two outfit Gillingham on January 6, and don't return to league duty until January 21 when West Ham visit Bramall Lane; kick-off 2pm.

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