‘It’s tough to watch’- Man City player sends Arsenal ‘message’ as title race takes another twist

Rico Lewis said Manchester City have sent a message to other teams after a week where they’ve scored 13 goals.
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Rico Lewis believes Manchester City have ‘sent a message’ to other teams with their impressive performances this week.

The Blues followed the 7-0 win over RB Leipzig by beating Burnley 6-0 at the Etihad, with Erling Haaland netting eight of the 13 goals scored over a five-day period. It continues an impressive run for City, who have not always been at their best since returning from the World Cup, but have now won eight of the last 10, drawing the other two.

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In that period, City have scored 31 goals, conceded just five and kept five clean sheets. It’s that potency up front and defensive solidity that will be a worry to sides like Arsenal, who moved eight points clear of Pep Guardiola’s side in the Premier League thanks to Sunday’s win over Crystal Palace.

But Lewis and his team-mates have full belief that they can overhaul that points gap when the final chapter of the season commences in April, and he said City’s form will be a ‘tough watch’ for the club’s rivals.

“It was quite similar to last week - a big scoreline and no goals conceded,” the defender said on the club’s incredible week. “It definitely sends a message out to everyone else that we are a threat at both ends.

“We’re not going to concede easily - it’s going to take a lot to score and also, we are going to create a lot of chances. For other teams it’s tough to watch but for us it’s a good message to send out to everyone else.”

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Despite the resounding scoreline at the weekend, City weren’t at their best in the opening 30 minutes against Burnley, before a Haaland double got the team going. Four second-half goals also wrapped up an excellent evening, as Haaland completed his hat-trick, Julian Alvarez scored two and Cole Palmer also netted.

“It’s tough to go from that big high [in midweek] to then focus again,” Lewis said, when asked about Saturday’s performance. “The team in the dressing room is so professional and they’ve done it year in, year out, so for them it’s quite simple. I’ve just got to follow what they do.

“We’ve shown today how professional we are and taking every game seriously and as a challenge. It was a mature performance. Burnley are a great team and are doing so well in the Championship.

“We approached the game in the right way and showed our level. We had control the whole game and when we have that much control, we are going to create so many chances and score goals.

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“Any team can cause problems,” he added. “We just took a step back and stayed calm and carried on with our game plan that we worked on in the week. We were patient and the chances came, and we took them.

“They play similar to us and it’s always tough to play against teams that replicate you. The game plan is playing our game like we have all season – staying patient, waiting for the moments and taking those moments.”

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