Fulham 0-3 Manchester City: 5 talking points as Skyblues run amok in second-half to secure another win | Premier League 2020-21
Manchester City beat Fulham 3-0 at Craven Cottage in the Premier League to edge closer to the title.
John Stones, Gabriel Jesus and Sergio Aguero were on target in the second-half as the Skyblues upped the ante following a poor start to the match.
Joao Cancelo's sublime cross in the 47th-minute was converted by Stones from close range before Jesus got into the act.
Aguero then had the chance to score his first goal of the season from the penalty spot after Ferran Torres was fouled inside the area and he did exactly that.
Fulham deserve praise for a solid defensive performance, especially in the first-half, but the defeat keeps them in the danger zone.
Here are the five talking points from the match:
#5 Aguero ends goal-drought but remains unimpressive
It's been a very difficult few months for Sergio Aguero, both physically and psychologically.
The striker suffered a horrific knee injury in June last year which has derailed his career since.
Tonight, he entered the match with arguably the longest drought of his career, so one can only imagine the relief Aguero must've felt upon scoring that penalty.
It was his first Premier League goal since January last year.
However, it does little to mask the Argentine's struggles on the pitch, as he was below-par once again.
The spark which he lights the league up with was desperately missing. Perhaps he needs more time to truly get into shape.
But with the season fast heading to a close, he's running out of time, and more performances like this will only add more fuel to exit rumors.
#4 Fulham's solid defense frustrated City
Fulham will surely feel they deserved something from the game tonight, and deservedly so, for they defended excellently in the first-half and kept their mighty visitors at bay.
Even though City had more of the ball, they couldn't really find a way past the Cottagers, who sat deep and marked their opposite numbers closely.
Sure, the likes of Aguero and Torres came quite close to breaking the deadlock, but Fulham didn't afford them any time or space to dispatch their chances at full pelt.
It seemed as if Scott Parker's whole gameplan was to strangle his visitors and eke out a point, with Fulham rarely threatening at the other end.
His tactics worked - but only in the first-half, as City's quality eventually showed.