Sterling hat-trick sends Man City clear

Raheem Sterling struck a second half hat-trick as champions Manchester City put pressure on title rivals Liverpool with a 3-1 win over Watford at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.The win moved Premier League leader's City four points clear of Liverpool who were expected to play Burnley yesterday.Watford manager Javi Gracia made seven changes to his side and left out key forwards Troy Deeney and Gerard Deulofeu, and the visitors' deep defending frustrated City in the opening half.The decision came after his attempt to take on Liverpool at Anfield ended in a 5-0 loss last week and perhaps was also influenced by Watford's FA Cup quarterfinal against Crystal Palace this week.As usual, Pep Guardiola's side dominated possession, but against such a bank of defenders showed no intention of pushing forward, and the match was more like an 'attack vs defence' training session.Within a minute of the restart, however, Sterling put City ahead with a controversial goal that was initially ruled out for offside before referee Paul Tierney changed his mind after lengthy consultation with his assistant.Once again there was confusion about the current offside law and its interpretation, with Watford players incensed. Sterling appeared to be in an offside position when played in by Sergio Aguero and the assistant referee had raised his flag. The decision appeared to be overruled because Daryl Janmaat, the Watford defender, played the ball against Sterling as the City striker aimed for goal. Simple tap-inThere was no argument about Sterling's second as he simply tapped in a Riyad Mahrez cross from close range after he was left alone at the goal line.The England winger completed his hat-trick in the 59th minute - cutting in from the left, behind Daryl Janmaat, to latch on to a fine David Silva pass, and ghosting across two defenders before drilling home.Gracia threw on Deeney and Deulofeu in the 66th minute and it took 17 seconds for them to make an impact, with Deeney heading down to the Spaniard who slotted home.But for City, this was another indication that they are not about to lose their nerve in the title run-in.This was their 10th win in their last 11 Premier League games and sixth straight victory in the competition. Guardiola's side have won 45 of the 48 points available at home.“It is the end part of the season so every game is important,” Guardiola said.“For three months we waited to be top of the league and now we have to try and win our games. I'm sorry if the first goal is offside but we deserve to win.“Today is not luck. We won because we were better, much better than the opponent. Here there are many people working to make last season's level and if they can do that, it will be down to hard work and not luck.”City now turn their attention to their Champions League last-16 return leg against Germany's Schalke on Tuesday, which they lead 3-2.NAMPA/REUTERS

Sterling hat-trick sends Man City clear

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-25

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Sterling hat-trick sends Man City clear

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-25

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