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LONDON (AP) — Erling Haaland scored twice as Manchester City beat Tottenham 2-0 on Tuesday to move within one victory of its fourth straight Premier League title.
The three-time defending champion will enter the final round of games on Sunday with a two-point lead over second place Arsenal.
City host West Ham in their final league match of the season, while Arsenal also play at home against Everton.
“Tennis players say that ‘the serve to win Wimbledon’, the last match, is the most difficult,” said City coach Pep Guardiola. “We know what we are playing for. The tension is there, the rival is very good. That’s why it’s difficult, we know.”
Haaland put City ahead in the 51st minute at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium when he converted Kevin De Bruyne’s cross from close range.
He scored his second from the penalty spot in the first minute of added time after Pedro Porro brought down Jeremy Doku.
The victory means City are in control of their own destiny in the title race, despite being pushed to the last minute by Arsenal.
Guardiola is now one step away from winning his sixth league championship in seven seasons.
No other English team has managed to win four consecutive top-flight titles, while City are also looking to secure back-to-back league and FA Cup doubles.
Coming into Tuesday’s game a point behind Arsenal, Guardiola had warned his players that anything other than maximum points would end their dominance of England’s top flight. That only increased the pressure on his team, which was also looking to end a four-game losing streak in the league against Spurs.
And the opportunity seemed to reach the City players in a nervous first half.
“They were playing for the consequences of the result. “If you do that, you will lose the Premier League,” Guardiola said. “They are human beings, I understand the pressure.”
Haaland’s goal six minutes into the second eased the tension. But while his goals were decisive, City had to rely on substitute goalkeeper Stefan Ortega to keep Spurs at bay as the home team searched for an equaliser.
Coming on in the 69th minute after Ederson suffered a head injury in a collision with Cristian Romero, Ortega quickly had to block a close-range shot from Dejan Kulusevski.
He later made another save to deny the Spurs attack, but Ortega’s best moment came in the 86th, when Son Heung-min raced towards the goal.
Just beating the goalkeeper, Son looked certain to score when he shot low into the corner. A draw would have put Arsenal in the driving seat for the title heading into Sunday’s season finale, but Son could only watch as Ortega stretched out a leg to deflect the ball.
Guardiola, who was watching, put his hands on his head before falling to the ground in relief.
Soon after, Doku lured Porro into diving into the Spurs box and referee Chris Kavanagh pointed to the spot.
Haaland put the game beyond doubt by firing his shot into the top corner, his second of the game and 38th of the season.
City’s victory also meant Aston Villa secured fourth place and qualification for next season’s Champions League, ahead of Tottenham, who placed fifth.
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AP Football: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
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