Kevin de Bruyne equalises as Man City rally to beat Newcastle
Oscar Bobb scored a stoppage-time winner as Manchester City moved within two points of Liverpool at the top of the Premier League with victory over Newcastle in a breathless encounter at St James’ Park.
The Norwegian, 20, latched on to a superb lofted pass from fellow substitute Kevin de Bruyne and showed superb footwork to take the ball pass Martin Dubravka and tap into the empty net.
It rounded off a brilliant game that saw both sides dominate periods, but City controlled the second half and showed the fight and quality to seal what could be a huge win come the end of the season.
While Bobb enjoyed his first Premier League goal, the success was sparked by De Bruyne.
Just four minutes and 35 seconds after he came off the bench, the Belgian found space in between the home defence and midfield before sweeping a finish into the far corner.
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Bernardo Silva had put the Premier League champions ahead in the 26th minute, meeting Kyle Walker’s right-wing cross with an audacious backheel, before two goals in three minutes put Newcastle in charge.
First, Alexander Isak collected a sweeping Bruno Guimaraes pass before curling past City’s reserve keeper Stefan Ortega – who had replaced the injured Ederson – and into the top corner for his fourth goal in four games.
Then, Anthony Gordon was released down the left and he took advantage of Walker backing off to spectacularly curl into the bottom corner and send the home fans into raptures.
City had only lost once in 72 Premier League games when taking the lead and that was under serious threat until their talisman De Bruyne continued his comeback from injury with a top-class strike and a wonderful assist for Bobb.
Boss Pep Guardiola and the entire City squad, including substitutes, celebrated emphatically at the full-time whistle as the reigning champions savoured a third successive league win and sixth in all competitions.
Kevin De Bruyne became the first Manchester City player to both score and assist in a Premier League game as a substitute since Sergio Aguero against Cardiff in January 2014
For large parts of this season City have been far from the level that saw them win the Treble last season, especially defensively.
Those issues reared their head again, and will lead to questions about the summer recruitment, with some poor defending for both Newcastle goals.
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This was also another game where they missed a host of chances, including Julian Alvarez screwing a golden chance over the bar from eight yards when they were behind.
In De Bruyne though, they have one of the best playmakers in the world or, arguably, the best.
He drifted effortlessly into space for his crucial 74th-minute equaliser and his perfectly-placed low finish was a reminder of his game-changing talent.
The 32-year-old’s last league appearance was in August at Burnley after being sidelined with a hamstring injury.