Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne has a timely reminder for Premier League leaders, Liverpool, that there is a long season ahead following his goal in a 3-0 win over Aston Villa that helped Pep Guardiola’s side narrow the gap at the top of the table to three points.
English winger and former Liverpool star Raheem Sterling gave City the lead at Etihad Stadium before De Bruyne sent a curling ball into the Villa penalty box and it drifted past goalkeeper Tom Heaton via an apparent glancing touch from Spanish star David Silva.
German midfielder Ilkay Gundogan added a third to put the game beyond Villa, but De Bruyne admitted that the newly-promoted side caused City plenty of problems in a more evenly balanced first 45 minutes.
While speaking to BT Sport the Belgian midfielder said, “In the first half we had some difficulty, a lack of intensity, and the rhythm was not really there,In the first half they had a couple of counter-attacks and we didn’t cope really well. But it’s going to happen, we played on Tuesday and they had the whole week [to prepare] so they’re a little bit fresher but, in the end, we deserved to win.”
After cutting the gap to three points ahead of Liverpool’s encounter against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, the 28-year-old had a message to the Champions League holders that the season is long and City will be hoping to keep their momentum going, “It’s a long competition, We answered really well after the international break, won three in a row, so let’s keep it going.”
