Manchester City vs West Ham United. Premier League.
Etihad StadiumAttendance55,097.
Report and free highlights as Manchester City retained the Premier League title with a 3-1 win over West Ham at the Etihad Stadium; two goals from Phil Foden and one from Rodri helped Pep Guardiola's side hold off Arsenal to make it four titles in a row
Sunday 19 May 2024 20:29, UK
Manchester City have been crowned Premier League champions again after a 3-1 win over West Ham at the Etihad Stadium.
Needing victory to be certain of retaining their crown and becoming the first club to be champions of England for four consecutive seasons, Phil Foden fired City in front in the second minute and added a second soon after to ease any nerves.
Mohammed Kudus' overhead kick late in the first half shifted the momentum briefly but Rodri's low strike early in the second half ended any hope that Arsenal supporters may have had that City would slip up on the final day and gift them the title.
For Pep Guardiola, it is a sixth Premier League title in eight seasons, one achieved as a result of not dropping a point in their final nine games. David Moyes' West Ham reign ends in defeat and a ninth-place finish in the table. Guardiola's City go marching on.
Tension was understandable at the outset given the muddle that City have got themselves into against Queens Park Rangers and Aston Villa on the final day in previous title wins but Foden swept much of that away inside 80 seconds with his sensational strike.
It was typical Foden, arrowing the ball into the top corner from the edge of the box, and when he doubled the advantage after finishing off a fine move, that looked to be that. Erling Haaland missed a glorious chance to make it three. It was a question of how many.
The point seemed likely to prove moot anyway when news of Everton's opening goal at Arsenal filtered through but the celebrations began prematurely. Kudus' spectacular overhead kick coupled with Arsenal's equaliser made the mood more uneasy.
As has so often been the case in recent years, it was Rodri who intervened to settle things. His low shot from outside the penalty box was reached by Alphonse Areola but the West Ham goalkeeper could only push the ball into the corner of his own net.
Cue Poznan-style celebrations - and eventually a pitch invasion - in the knowledge that Arsenal's challenge had finally been seen off. It needed nine wins in a row to do it but City showed again that when there is no margin for error, they are relentless winners.
Sky Sports' Adam Bate:
In a season that was notable for Jurgen Klopp announcing his departure from Liverpool because he was "running out of energy" to do the job, Pep Guardiola was able to push Manchester City on to the Premier League title once again.
That relentless drive remains, that appetite to coax yet more from a team that had already achieved it all in winning the treble. Victory in the FA Cup final will complete another double - back-to-back doubles for the first time in English football history.
Read more of Adam's feature here
It was fitting that Foden starred, as he has done throughout the season, winning the FWA Footballer of the Year award.
Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, he was careful to share the credit for City's nerveless display.
"Not just me, all the lads have played in important games, we have played this scenario over. We were confident. It has paid off."
"It was the perfect start. The [nickname] sniper is going to stay forever now.
"This feeling will never get old. I want this winning feeling always."
"I had that feeling last season," Guardiola told reporters in the press conference after the game when asked if he had now completed English football.
"We were in Istanbul (after winning the Champions League) and I said, 'It's over. What am I doing here? There is nothing left.' But I have a contract. I am here and I am still enjoying some of the moments, sometimes tired but some of them I love.
"And after a few days, we start playing good, winning games, different players, and we start to think about how no one has done four in a row. Why not try it?
"Now, I am feeling it is done. What next? I don't know, right now. Well, I know it is FA Cup.
"I know no team in all history, Gary Lineker told me, I did not know it, no team has done back-to-back Premier Leagues and FA Cups.
"So, it is our rivals, and what I want is for my players to enjoy it for two or three days and then we have two or three days to prepare the final.
"But, next season, right now, I am not able to know what will be the motivation to do it. It is difficult sometimes to find it when everything is done.
"But I know that the players and myself will be there and think, why shouldn't we win today? Why not? Why should we not work as much as possible to do what we have to do?
"And I know we are going to do it. I know."
The 2023/24 season has reached its conclusion but planning has already started for the new campaign.
Several Premier League sides have confirmed pre-season friendlies ahead of the 2024/25 term, which kicks off on the weekend of August 17/18, while others have given fresh kits an early airing.
The Premier League fixtures - all 380 of them - will be released at 9am on Tuesday, June 18, with full coverage on Sky Sports News and Sky Sports' digital platforms.
The new EFL season starts on the weekend of August 10/11 and marks the launch of Sky Sports+, giving more choice to sports fans via live streams and a new dedicated channel, at no extra cost. In a broadcasting first, every EFL game across all three divisions - the Championship, League One and League Two - will be streamed live on the opening weekend.
Stand by for another busy summer in the transfer window - clubs can do business from June 14 until August 30 and the Sky Sports Transfer Centre will keep you posted with all the latest news and rumours.
Euro 2024 is just weeks away, too. Keep track of England's Euro fixtures, check out the full tournament schedule in Germany and join us on skysports.com or the Sky Sports app to follow every game with our live match blogs.
