"This sport is rigged", "It's the history of Tottenham" - Fans on X react as Manchester City knock Spurs out of the FA Cup
Manchester City booked their place in the fifth round of the FA Cup after a 1-0 win against Tottenham Hotspur on Friday (January 26). But, Nathan Ake's winner came in controversial fashion.
Pep Guardiola's Cityzens dominated proceedings at Spurs' stomping ground. They barely let the hosts have a kick, with Ange Postecoglou's men managing just one attempt throughout.
Manchester City had the ball in the back of the net in the sixth minute when Oscar Bobb slotted home from close range. But, VAR intervened deeming the Norweigan attacker to be just offside when Julian Alvarez shot beforehand. It was a let-off for Tottenham.
It was a lackluster showing from Spurs in the first half with Postecoglou's men rarely threatening. They lacked composure in front of goal and that didn't improve in the second half.
The current FA Cup holders went agonizingly close to taking the lead in the 49th minute. Bobb found Alvarez with an excellent pass but Micky van de Ven was on hand to prevent the Argentinian attacker from striking.
Tottenham finally conjured up an attempt in the 54th minute when Timo Werner did well to play Brennan Johnson through on goal. The Welsh forward tried lifting the ball over City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega but the German kept the hosts at bay.
Kevin De Bruyne entered the fray in the 65th minute and he should have put Manchester City in front 18 minutes later. The Cityzens capitalized on poor play from Pierre-Emile Hojberg with Phil Foden playing his Belgian teammate in on goal.
However, De Bruyne surprisingly sent his shot just wide of the post from about 12 yards out. Somehow Postecoglou's troops were still level.
That was until the 88th minute when Ake scored a controversial winner. Spurs were livid as they felt their Italian goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario was impeded by Ruben Dias.
But, Ake pounced on the loose ball, prodding home from close range to score his side's first-ever goal at Spurs' new stadium. VAR checked the goal and deemed that there was minimal contact from Dias on Vicario.
One fan reacted to Manchester City's win by insisting the game was rigged:
"I quit watching football. This sport is rigged."
An Arsenal fan mocked Spurs as they are likely to go yet another season without silverware:
"You can change the stadium. You can change the players. You can change the manager. But It’s the history of Tottenham."
Here's how fans on X (formerly Twitter) reacted to City's last-gasp win against Tottenham:
Nathan Ake reacts to scoring the winner in Manchester City's victory against Tottenham
Ake was the hero for Manchester City, slotting home his ninth goal for the club. The Dutchman has been an important member of Guardiola's side not only this season but during their treble-winning 2022-23 campaign.
There will be much debate over the circumstances of his goal but he's adamant the Cityzens deserved their win. He said (via City Xtra):
"I’m so happy, it was tough, we played really well. We had to score. It didn’t happen for a long time but luckily we got it. I’m not sure what happened [for the goal]. I just touched it in. I will have to see it back. I don’t know what happened."
Ake has been with Manchester City for four years after he arrived from Bournemouth in August 2020 for £41 million. He's made 107 appearances, displaying his versatility as a makeshift left-back and playing in his preferred center-back role.