Raheem Sterling scored the game’s sole goal, his 100th in the Premier League, as City defeated a well-organized Wolves team to extend Manchester City advantage at the top of the league. The England attacker scored from the penalty spot after Max Kilamn was adjudged to have obstructed Bernardo Silva’s cross with his arm. It was a day of major milestones at the Etihad, with Ederson’s 100th clean sheet for Manchester City joining Sterling’s 100th Premier League goal.
100 – Raheem Sterling has scored his 100th goal in the Premier League. Sterling is the 32nd player to reach this total in the competition, and the eighth-youngest at 27 years and 3 days. Centurion. pic.twitter.com/QGKaeoPwwR
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) December 11, 2021
Wolves lined up with five at the back in an attempt to thwart Manchester City, and for much of the first 45 minutes, they were successful. They were organized and guarded in numbers, restricting the number of space that City could generate.
However, after a first half devoid of scoring opportunities for either side, Raul Jimenez was sent off in stoppage time at the conclusion of the first period after being booked twice in the space of 31 seconds, the second for preventing Rodri’s free-kick from being taken. It was a moment of insanity that left the visitors facing an ongoing struggle.
And there was still time for further intrigue well before interval when Jack Grealish believed his cross was stopped by Max Kilman’s arm, but John Moss brushed off the penalty demands.
Manchester City increased their pace in the second half. Conor Coady cleared Ilkay Gundogan’s header off the line, andOleksandr Zinchenko forced a good save from Jose Sa from distance.
City appeared to be on the verge of scoring, and the turning point came from the penalty spot. Joao Moutinho used his arm to block Bernardo Silva’s cross, and a penalty was awarded after a long VAR review. Raheem Sterling easily converted for his 100th Premier League goal.
Grealish could have made it 2-0 seconds later, but his close-range attempt went off goal, and Bernardo’s thunderous drive was excellently stopped by Sa’s knees.
Ederson pushed over Kilaman’s header deep into stoppage time after the Wolves goalkeeper produced another fantastic save to deny Gabriel Jesus from a close angle. It was a nail-biting finish, but Manchester City were deserving victors.