Man City star ends 10 year wait amid Pep Guardiola's reaction to difficult Fulham win

Manchester City came from behind on Saturday afternoon to beat Fulham 3-2 in the Premier League but they emerged relieved after the visitors caused them problems at the Etihad Stadium.

A brace from Mateo Kovacic and a Jeremy Doku strike saw Pep Guardiola's side come from behind after Andreas Pereira had fired Fulham in front.

A late goal from Rodrigo Muniz proved to be no more than a consolation as City found the win to ensure they head into the international break one point behind league leaders Liverpool.

Here's all of the latest City headlines wrapped up on Saturday, October 5, after their win over the Cottagers.

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READ MORE: Man City 3-2 Fulham highlights

Pep and Lillo step up as Kovacic ends 10-year wait

Pep Guardiola said on Friday that he doesn't need to speak to his players as often these days because of how many leaders they have and how long they have been together.

At some points during Saturday's 3-2 win against Fulham, it was easy to see why. No less than six Manchester City players congregated to discuss exactly who should take a free-kick just outside the penalty area as they worked together to find the best way past Bernd Leno.

However, the upshot of that set-piece - Erling Haaland striking the ball off Bernardo Silva as he lay on the floor behind the wall - gave an indication of why help would be needed from the sidelines for this one. In order to come back from a Fulham side who showed why they started this game in sixth, Guardiola turned to more help than usual.

Mateo Kovacic's brace, the first time he has scored twice in a club game for over 10 years, and Jeremy Doku's goal cancelled out Andreas Pereira's opener and rendered Rodrigo Muniz's strike a consolation.

Read the full report, here.

Guardiola reaction to difficult win

The game was eventually won away from the Traore battle, and fittingly saw Lewis get another assist for the season. His pass to Doku was nothing special at all, but Doku's strike was - dipping, swerving and curling into the top corner. Both of Guardiola's arms shot up in the air in celebration.

But his face told a different story. A puff of the cheeks and a roll of the eyes. He knew City had been made to work for the three points and didn't necessarily win the game with any particular tactical plan that came off.

Rodrigo Muniz's late consolation to set up a nervy finish only underlined the fact that City never really got to grips with Fulham all afternoon. So when the final whistle blew, he headed straight for Marco Silva to offer some warm words and then stood motionless for a second or two on the side of the pitch.

A chat with Traore followed, the pair parting in good spirits, before Guardiola returned to Silva for a lengthy chat before being one of the last to head to the dressing room. He will now get a fortnight off, and he probably needs it after 90 minutes which must have felt like a lifetime.

Read the full story, here.