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Manchester City continued their imperious stranglehold over the League Cup with a 2-1 victory over Aston Villa in the final on Sunday as goals from Sergio Aguero and Rodri secured the trophy for a third straight season.
City, who have now won the competition in five of the last seven campaigns, dominated much of the Wembley clash and should have been home and dry when they took a 2-0 lead after half an hour with Aguero's strike in the 20th minute and a Rodri header.
Yet Tanzanian striker Mbwana Samatta headed home for Villa just before halftime, following a bizarre slip from City defender John Stones, to fuel their hopes of a comeback.
The second half failed to live up to the first, however, with few clear chances until City keeper Claudio Bravo pulled off a remarkable save to push Bjorn Engels' header against the post and out in the 87th minute.
City are the first side to win the competition for three seasons in a row since Liverpool claimed four straight titles from 1981 to 1984. City have won it seven times and trail record holders Liverpool who have lifted the trophy on eight occasions.
"Three times in a row is a big success. It's the consistency, incredible," said City's Spanish coach Pep Guardiola.
"It was awesome. We struggled in the first minutes and the last ones. They had two clear chances in the first minutes but we played really well, especially in the second half."
The victory dispelled some of the disappointment that has hung over the club after they were hit by a two-season European ban for allegedly flouting UEFA's financial rules.
While City's Premier League title defense is in tatters, as they trail leaders Liverpool by 22 points, Guardiola's side remain in the hunt for a treble which would be the envy of most clubs, with the FA Cup and Champions League still up for grabs.
Vinicius Jr. pulls his shirt after scoring Real Madrid's first goal during their Liga clash with Barcelona at Estadio Santiago Bernabeu in Madrid, Spain, March 1, 2020. /VCG
Elsewhere, Real Madrid showed their character by beating Barcelona 2-0 in Sunday's top-of-the-table 'Clasico', leapfrogging their rivals at the La Liga summit after a week in which their pride had taken a beating at home and in Europe.
Brazilian teenager Vinicius Jr scored the opener in the 71st minute with a strike that deflected off Gerard Pique, flummoxing goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen who had made some jaw-dropping saves, and substitute Mariano added the second in added time.
Real's victory means they lead the standings on 56 points after 26 games, with Barca slipping to second spot on 55, while Zinedine Zidane's side also crucially have the better head-to-head record in the event both sides finish level on points.
Real swallowed chastening defeats by Levante in La Liga and Manchester City in their Champions League last 16, first-leg tie in the past week but in the second half they overwhelmed Barca, threatening on numerous occasions before breaking the deadlock.
"We deserve our victory for everything we did, in attack and defense," Zidane told reporters. "It has been a complicated week for us and we had the chance to turn things around and we did that."
"But this win also doesn't change anything. We have a long way to go and we have to continue. We've got three important points but we'll have more difficult games and we will be criticized again.”
Barcelona had bossed the first period and twice could have taken the lead but were powerless to stop Real after the interval and their impotence was summed up when Lionel Messi raced towards goal but was easily tracked down by Marcelo.
Marcelo's tackle got as loud a cheer as the goals from Madrid's fans who had not been able to toast a league win over Barca at the Santiago Bernabeu since 2014.
The long-awaited victory was confirmed by an unlikely source in forward Mariano, who had only just come off the bench to make his first league appearance of the season.
Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti (C) remonstrates with referee Chris Kavanagh before being shown a red card in a 1-1 draw with Manchester United at Goodison Park, England, March 1, 2020. /VCG
In the Premier League, Everton manager Carlo Ancelotti was sent off after approaching the referee as yet more VAR controversy contributed to a fiery finish in a 1-1 draw with Manchester United.
Goalkeeping errors by both United's David De Gea and Everton's Jordan Pickford were central to the outcome at Goodison Park.
But Everton thought they had won the game in stoppage time when a shot from Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who had opened the scoring, deflected off United's Harry Maguire and into the net.
The goal, however, was ruled out by the video assistant referee with the offside Gylfi Sigurdsson, lying in the path of De Gea, deemed to have obstructed the view of the keeper.
Ancelotti was as unhappy as the home crowd on Merseyside, with the Toffees boss sent off after approaching referee Chris Kavanagh on the field after the final whistle.
"He sent me off the pitch but then after that I had a long conversation with him that I would like to keep private," Ancelotti told Sky Sports. "The goal (Calvert-Lewin's disallowed shot) I think was a borderline situation."
"He (the referee) says that Gylfi (Sigurdsson) was offside but in our opinion he did not affect the vision of De Gea. It is difficult to decide but the game is finished, it is a draw and we played really well so we are happy."
The red card means Ancelotti is in line for a touchline ban for Everton's next match, against his former club Chelsea.
The draw saw fifth-placed United miss the chance to cut the gap to Chelsea in fourth to a single point in the Premier League table as Everton stayed in 11th position.
Wolves striker Raul Jimenez celebrates after scoring at Tottenham at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, England, March 1, 2020. /VCG
Meanwhile, Jose Mourinho claimed Tottenham paid the price for being "too nice" as Wolves came from behind to clinch a crucial 3-2 win in the race to qualify for the Champions League on Sunday.
Mourinho's side led twice in north London thanks to goals from Steven Bergwijn and Serge Aurier.
But Matt Doherty got Wolves' first before second half goals from Diogo Jota and Raul Jimenez overturned a 2-1 deficit in the second half.
It was a bitter blow for injury-hit Tottenham, who suffered three consecutive defeats in all competitions for the first time this season.
Wolves moved two points above Tottenham into sixth place in the Premier League and Mourinho fears his team's hopes of Champions League qualification will be ruined unless they develop a more ruthless streak.
"It was a totally unfair result. But it is difficult to stop Wolves if you don't have the mentality that they showed," Mourinho said.
"In the first and last minutes they had fouls to stop the counter-attack. Wolves had the correct mentality.
"We were punished for quite a long time because we don't have that aggression. We are too nice. That is the only thing that made the difference in the game.
"I cannot complain about their spirit, I can complain about some psychological characteristics that are very difficult to change."
Injuries to Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, Moussa Sissoko and now goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, who missed the Wolves game with a groin injury, have badly hampered Tottenham in recent weeks.
But, asked if the injuries had taken a toll, Mourinho said: "It would be too easy for me to say that. I try to forget the players that we are missing.
"It is frustration, not just for me but for the players. We recovered 11 points distance to fourth, then when we got to one point everything changed for us, but we have to keep fighting like we did today."
On France keeper Lloris, Mourinho added: "It's hard to say when he is going to be back. Is it a big problem? I don't think it is but he was not ready to play today. We have to wait."
Source(s): Reuters
