Manchester City 2-1 Fulham: Erling Haaland comes off the bench to score stoppage time winner

Just when the rest of the Premier League thought they glimpsed a bit of hope, just when Arsenal were dreaming of opening up a four point lead at the top of the table, just when the champions seemed to be having a bad day, the second half approached its midway point and Manchester City brought on Erling Haaland.

Pep Guardiola’s side had been down to ten men for some time by then, depleted by the first half sending off of Joao Cancelo, and they were playing on adrenaline and the aggrieved fury of men who have persuaded themselves they have been wronged, when they turned to Superman.

Haaland is the closest thing this league has seen to unstoppable for some time and he did not disappoint. Even on his return from a foot injury that has kept him out of recent games, he was way too hot for the redoubtable Fulham defence to handle.

Erling Haaland came off the bench to give Manchester City a late winner deep in stoppage time from the penalty spot

The Norwegian striker almost had his kick saved by Bernd Leno, who got a strong hand to it but could not keep it out

Kevin de Bruyne won the foul just inside the penalty area after a naive piece of defending by Antonee Robinson in added time

The match-winner came off the bench having recently recovered from a foot injury that kept him out of the last two games

He thought he had scored with a flying header from a cross by the remarkable Kevin de Bruyne but it was ruled out for offside. Undaunted, Haaland came back for more. When De Bruyne was fouled deep into added time, Haaland stepped up to take the penalty. It was not a great penalty but he scored. He always scores.

It was Haaland’s 18th league goal of the season from the 12 games he has played. And so City, who had taken the lead early in the first half through Julian Alvarez but had been pegged back when Cancelo’s foul on Harry Wilson presented Andreas Pereira with the chance to equalise from the spot, returned to the top of the Premier League.

They may be supplanted by Arsenal, who play Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday lunchtime, but it would not be a surprise if City stay at the top now. And stay there. And stay there for the rest of the season. The wild celebrations of Guardiola and Haaland at the end suggested they felt that this was a crucial victory psychologically.

The 22-year-old was also shown a yellow card after taking his shirt off in his celebration having sealed a late, late victory

Julian Alvarez scored his third Premier League goal of the season early in the first half with a good finish across Bernd Leno

The Argentinian youngster was found well by midfielder Ilkay Gundogan after he broke in behind the Fulham defenders

City had dominated possession at the start. Even from the opening minutes, the Fulham forwards wore the expressions of players who were anticipating that this was going to be a long afternoon chasing shadows and trying to maximise the rare opportunities they could manage to forge.

City probed at the Fulham defence and De Bruyne forced the first save out of Bernd Leno inside ten minutes when the German goalkeeper stretched out his left hand to tip over a piledriver from City’s playmaker. It was, inevitably, only a brief reprieve for the visitors.

A few minutes later, City broke down a short spell of Fulham possession on the half way line and Rodri worked the ball to Ilkay Gundogan. Gundogan drove forward and slid a perfectly weighted pass into the path of Julian Alvarez, who lashed a rising drive goalwards. Leno brushed the ball with his left hand but the ball crashed off the underside of the bar and bounced over the line.

But Joao Cancelo saw red for a foul on Harry Wilson as Manchester City were reduced to 10 men not long after taking the lead

And former Manchester United midfielder Andreas Pereira showed great composure to equalise from the spot for the visitors

The visiting side had done brilliantly to keep the overwhelmingly dominant hosts out for the majority of the second period

It felt as if that would be just the beginning of a deluge but then the game took a twist. Fulham, who were playing without the injured Aleksandar Mitrovic, broke forward for the first time, Carlos Vinicius slipped a pass inside to Harry Wilson and as he burst into the box, he slanted his run into Joao Cancelo. Cancelo body-checked him, Wilson tumbled to the turf and referee Darren England pointed to the spot.

City protested and their protests grew when the referee brandished a red card at Cancelo. The decision was not overturned and Cancelo walked disconsolately to the touchline where he had an animated conversation with Guardiola. Cancelo leaned on a container and watched as Andreas Pereira prepared to take the penalty. When Pereira sent Ederson the wrong way, Cancelo thumped the container with all his might and disappeared down the tunnel.

Flickers of hope and encouragement spread around the upper echelons of the Premier League. City had to play the remaining 64 minutes of the game with ten men. Most people still made them favourites to win, despite Fulham’s recent run of form, and City soon resumed their siege of Fulham’s goal as if nothing had happened.

The Brazilian sent his compatriot Ederson the wrong way from 12 yards after a stuttering run up to draw the Cottagers level

Except they were now playing with righteous indignation, too, filled with fury at the dismissal of Cancelo. When Silva was barged off the ball by Wilson just before the interval, Silva was so determined that the referee should book Wilson that he earned a booking himself instead. Tensions rose even higher.

When the half time whistle blew, City’s players looked as if they wanted to fight the world. Guardiola walked on to the pitch as the rain fell in a deluge and shepherded them off one by one before they could get themselves in trouble. He stopped short of confronting Mr England himself and headed to the dressing room before the referee reached the touchline.

Fulham mopped up City’s pressure after the interval and so, midway through the half, City called for the cavalry. Haaland and Phil Foden both came off the bench and straight away there was even greater urgency and purpose to City’s play. Haaland miskicked in front of goal and then, a minute later, stretched to meet a cross at the back post but could only direct his half-volley across goal.

Manager Pep Guardiola had been left furious by several refereeing decisions which he felt went against his side on Saturday

Leno looked to have saved Haaland’s injury-time winner after guessing the right way but the ball squirmed through his grasp

Fifteen minutes from time, City thought they had taken the lead. De Bruyne drifted a delicious cross into the box from left to right and Haaland rose highest in the box, glancing it expertly down and across Leno and into the net. The celebrations were wild but also short-lived. VAR checked the goal and Haaland – specifically his right knee – had strayed just offside.

City fed off the anger that was consuming them. Silva and De Bruyne both played like superhumans, directing play, orchestrating moves, hurtling from one end of the pitch to the other, bundles of furious, nervous, creative energy. And deep into added time, it was Silva’s cross that was only half cleared at the far post and when it fell to De Bruyne, his trailing leg was clipped by Antonee Robinson and the referee pointed the spot.

Haaland, who else, stepped up to take it. He drilled it low to Leno’s right but Leno guessed the right way. It looked for a second as if the keeper would save it but it squirmed under his body and into the net and Haaland wheeled away, ripping off his shirt and whirling it around his head as he ran towards the centre line.

Marco Silva’s side missed an opportunity to usurp rivals Chelsea in sixth place had they pressed their numerical advantage

Guardiola’s City go top of the table with the winner at the expense of Arsenal who will play Chelsea on Sunday afternoon