Sports

LONDON — Jose Mourinho finds himself in the unaccustomed position of having to prove himself all over again as he prepares to open up a final trophy front with Manchester United on Friday.

Much of the heat on the Portuguese comes as a blowback from the other side of Manchester where City have blazed such a scorching Premier League trail that has overshadowed United’s second place in the table and easy progress to the Champions League knockout phase.

United are favourites to see off Championship side Derby County in the FA Cup third round on Friday. But being cast as Manchester’s support act clearly grates with Mourinho, particularly when combined with suggestions that he is tactically inferior to his rival, Pep Guardiola.

Mourinho’s recent grouchiness, when he hit out at former United player turned pundit Paul Scholes, bemoaned his lack of spending power and even slapped down City supporter and former-Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher has added to the impression that he is weighed down by his battle with the Spaniard.

Although the pair’s relationship appears healthier than when they were last pitted against each other as managers of Real Madrid and Barcelona in La Liga, Mourinho is clearly struggling with being seen as second best.

To an extent, he has been unfairly treated and he was right to point out that the United squad he inherited was inferior to the one Guardiola took over at City, which had the likes of David Silva, Sergio Aguero and Kevin De Bruyne in place.

While the media has acclaimed the Spaniard’s impact on such players as Raheem Sterling and Fabian Delph at City, the reemergence of United’s Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata and Anthony Martial under Mourinho has not received equal billing.

Lingard, in particular, has been a revelation since Mourinho switched him to a more central role, scoring six Premier League goals since the start of December. Only Tottenham’s Harry Kane has a better record.

“This role, further inside, allows me to be closer to the striker, to get in the box, create more things and obviously have more shots at goal,” he recently told MUTV.

Attacking alternatives

The next month could prove crucial on many fronts for both club and manager. With Romelu Lukaku and Zlatan Ibrahimovic both injured, Mourinho has the opportunity to continue with the 4-3-3 formation that worked so well in Monday’s 2-0 Premier League win at Everton.

The absence of a recognised frontman provided freedom to others, with Martial, who scored an excellent goal at Goodison Park, and a more advanced Paul Pogba the obvious beneficiaries.

If that formation represents the future then it is also a throwback to the one Mourinho first employed when he arrived at Chelsea in 2004, although to persist now without a Didier Drogba or Lukaku-type focus would be a departure.

One of the criticisms levelled against Mourinho this season is that he is too rigid in his thinking. It is pointed out that while Guardiola happily works with different backroom staff, soaking up new ideas at each club, Mourinho relies on the same, tight support team.

Having tasted success all over Europe in his 15 years of management, to put himself on a par with Alex Ferguson in terms of continual silverware at United, particularly in the shadow of Guardiola, represents the final challenge of Mourinho’s career.

Yet even winning the Champions League this season may still see Mourinho’s methods criticised because so much emphasis is now placed on the way teams play. Even though United are just nine league goals short of the 54 they managed last term, they have been cast as dour and unwilling to go toe-to-toe with City and Liverpool.

Mourinho won’t worry too much about that, but clearly feels the need to reinforce some parts of the team and is expected to bring in an extra midfielder and a full back this transfer window. The club will provide the resources to support his vision, which could yet yield the Champions League and FA Cup plus a second-placed league finish this season.

Perhaps only Guardiola would bet against him; for Mourinho, there remains everything to play for.

Former world number one Andy Murray’s lingering hip issues forced him to withdraw from the Brisbane International on Tuesday with the Briton admitting he was unsure whether he could recover in time for the Australian Open later this month.

Murray has not played a competitive match since a Wimbledon quarter-final loss last July due to the complaint and despite coming through a one-set exhibition in Abu Dhabi last week, he was unable to train on Tuesday and announced his withdrawal.

“I’m very disappointed to be withdrawing from the Brisbane International,” Murray, seeded second in Brisbane, told tournament organisers before going into further detail of his predicament in an emotional post on social media.

“Having been recommended to treat my hip conservatively since the US Open, I have done everything asked of me from a rehab perspective and worked extremely hard to try get back on the court competing,” Murray said on his Instagram account.

“Having played practice sets here in Brisbane with some top players unfortunately this hasn’t worked yet to get me to the level I would like so I have to reassess my options. Continuing rehab is one option and giving my hip more time to recover.

“Surgery is also an option but the chances of a successful outcome are not as high as I would like, which has made this my secondary option and my hope has been to avoid that. However, this is something I may have to consider but let’s hope not.”

The world number 16 had been due to play his first tournament match of the season on Thursday with a second-round encounter against American Ryan Harrison at Pat Rafter Arena. He will be replaced by German lucky loser Yannick Hanfmann.

Murray, who said on Sunday that he planned to trim his schedule in 2018 to prevent a recurrence of his injury issues, will remain in Brisbane for the rest of the week before planning his next move.

“In the short term I’m going to be staying in Australia for the next couple of days to see if my hip settles down a bit and will decide by the weekend whether to stay out here or fly home to assess what I do next,” the 30-year-old added.

“Sorry for the long post but I wanted to keep everyone in the loop and get this off my chest as it’s really hurting inside.”

Brisbane tournament director Cameron Pearson wished the three-times Grand Slam winner well.

“I’m really disappointed for Andy, as I know how much he was looking forward to getting his season started in Brisbane,” he said.

“As a two-time former champion, he has great memories of playing on Pat Rafter Arena and thrilling his fans. I wish him all the best to be ready to play the Australian Open.”

Murray’s latest injury setback will also come as a blow to Australian Open organisers ahead of the year’s first major in Melbourne starting on Jan. 15, along with those of fellow “Big Four” members Rafael Nadal (back) and Novak Djokovic (elbow).

Manchester United’s dismal run of results in December continued with a third consecutive Premier League draw as they were held 0-0 at home to Southampton on Saturday, dropping to third in the standings.

United had top scorer Romelu Lukaku carried off on a stretcher early in the game and looked stricken of any thrust or creativity in attack, ending the month with four wins from nine matches in all competitions and without a victory in their last four.

Jose Mourinho’s side began brightly and Lukaku came close to giving them the lead in the third minute when he headed a Juan Mata cross over the bar, while Jesse Lingard also narrowly missed the target before the interval with a flicked header.

Paul Pogba had a late strike ruled out as he knocked Nemanja Matic’s rolling shot in from an offside position when the ball looked destined to hit the post.

United began December with a 100 per cent record in the league and Europe at Old Trafford, but have now failed to win three of their last four home games. 

The run of results has left them third in the league with 44 points, 14 behind leaders Manchester City and one behind champions Chelsea, who moved up to second. 

Mourinho insisted his side had deserved to win the game and criticised referee Craig Pawson for not giving a penalty in the first half when the ball struck the hand of Maya Yoshida in the area.

“I think we played enough to win, with all the difficulties. We started the game and we lost the striker [Lukaku] and we lost one of only two changes I have on the bench in attacking areas,” Mourinho told a news conference.

“Then a very good referee, one of the most promising young referees in England and Europe too, had a very bad decision that punished us and then the game was about us missing some important chances.”

Southampton came to Old Trafford having been hammered 5-2 by Tottenham Hotspur on Boxing Day and after selling defender Virgil van Dijk to Liverpool, but they were rarely in danger of going behind.

They ended a run of 11 league games without recording a clean sheet and move up to 13th in the standings on 20 points.

They were not far from snatching a first win in eight games when Shane Long saw his shot turned over the crossbar by the toe of David de Gea in the second half, while before the interval De Gea dived low to repel a shot from James Ward-Prowse.

“It was a really important point for us, especially after a really sobering few games,” said Southampton captain Yoshida. 

“The reaction from the players was great, we’re really happy with that. We showed good spirit today, and now we move onto the next game.”

Mourinho revealed Zlatan Ibrahimovic will be out of action for a month, but he hopes to have Lukaku back soon following his head injury.

Ibrahimovic went off at half-time in United’s Boxing Day draw against Burnley, but Mourinho did not divulge the nature of the injury that will keep the former Paris Saint-Germain star sidelined throughout January.

“Zlatan one month out,” Mourinho told BT Sport.

Ibrahimovic had only recently got back into the United team after missing the first half of the season while he recovered from a serious knee injury suffered in April.

AMMAN — The past 12 months will live long in the memory for some memorable sporting achievements.

From new national records to world champions, Jordan’s sports men and women have once again delivered when it has mattered.

The Jordan Olympic Committee has rounded-up just a few of the achievements that have grabbed the headlines in 2017.

Chess

Yaza Al Bashayreh took gold in the U-16 Asian Championships in the UAE.

Shooting

Two bronze medals for Jordan at the Arab Championships in Kuwait.

Table Tennis

Four gold, four silver and four bronze medals in the West Asian Championships held in Jordan.

Bridge

Ladies took the Asian title in the UAE.

Taekwondo

Two silver and one bronze in Asian Juniors Championships in Kazakhstan.

Six bronze medals at the Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku.

Fahed Al Subaihi took U-14 Asian gold in Vietnam.

Ahmad Abu Ghaush won bronze at the World Championships in Korea. He also won gold and bronze medals in World Grand Prix events.

Two bronze medals for Fahed Al Subaihi and Jumana Asfar in the U-14 World Championships in Egypt.

Four bronze medals at the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Turkmenistan.

Olympic coach Faris Al Assaf named as the best Arab coach in the prestigious Mohammad Bin Rashed Al Maktoum Sports Awards.

Kickboxing

Udai Abu Hassweh became world and Asian champion.

Ali Khalaf took bronze at the World Championships in Hungary.

Five bronze medals in the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Turkmenistan.

Boxing

Hussein Ishiash took Asian bronze in Kazakhstan.

Three bronze medals at the Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku.

Fencing

Seven gold, six silver and 10 bronze medals in the Arab Juniors Championship in Jordan.

Karate

Bashar Al Najjar took gold in the Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku.

Hala Turaish took bronze in Islamic Solidarity Games.

Omar Al Najjar became Asian champion and Mohammad Fahed Sami won silver with four further bronzes won teammates.

Swimming

Two gold medals for Khader Baqleh in Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku.

National team took gold in relay 200m in Islamic Solidarity Games.

Mohammad Al Bdour took gold at the Asian Championships in Uzbekistan.

One gold, four silver and five bronzes were won in the Arab Championships held in Egypt.

Athletics

Shareif Al Atawneh took Asian Juniors gold for the 3000m in Thailand.

Aliya Bushnaq took gold in the 200m and 400m at the Arab Juniors in Tunisia.

Shareif Al Atawneh took Arab Juniors gold in the 3000m.

Nour Al Qadi won two bronze medals in the High Junp and Long Jump at the Arab Juniors.

Paralympic sports

Amer Al Abbadi took Shot Put silver at the Islamic Solidarity Games in Baku.

Powerlifters won one silver and two bronze medals at the World Powerlifting Championships in Mexico.

Jujitsu

Silver for Luma Qubbaj at the World Games in Poland.

Two gold medals for Rana Qubbaj and Haider Al Rasheed in Asian Jujitsu Championship in Vietnam and bronze for Zeid Sami.

Rana Qubbaj clinched gold and bronze at the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Turkmenistan.

Hamzeh Al Rasheed clinched World gold in Colombia and silver for his brother Haidar Al Rasheed.

Squash

Mohammad Al Sarraj took U-19 World bronze in New Zealand, and also became Asian U-19 champion in his home town.

Muaythai

Silver for Mohammad Al Barri at the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games held in Turkmenistan.

Rugby

Jordan finished third in the Arab 7s Championships hosted in Amman.

Golf

Shergo Kurdi clinched the Arab Juniors Championship held in Tunisia.

Weightlifting

Malik Fa’ed took four medals at the Arab and Afro-Asian Championship in Egypt.

Ra’ed Al Khawaldeh won silver at the Arab and Afro-Asian Championship in Egypt.

Hamzeh Al Ajarmeh took bronze at the Asian Cup held in South Korea.

Football

National teams of U-23, U-20, U-17 and Futsal qualified through to the Asian Championships.

Billiards and Snooker

Three gold, two silver and two bronze medals won at the Arab Championship in Lebanon.

Anthony Davis scored a team-high 33 points, DeMarcus Cousins had 27 points and 14 rebounds, and Rajon Rondo dished out a career-high 25 assists to power the New Orleans Pelicans to a 128-113 victory over the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night at the Smoothie King Centre.

Jrue Holiday added 23 points and E’Twaun Moore had 20 for the Pelicans, who won their third consecutive game. The Nets lost for the seventh time in eight games. Brooklyn were led by Caris LeVert with 22 points.

Davis also had a season-high six blocks and tied a career high with four made 3-pointers.

Kings 109, Cavaliers 95

Vince Carter scored 24 points in Sacramento’s improbable win over Cleveland.

The 40-year-old guard, who missed the team’s previous three games — two by coach’s decision and one as a result of rib pain — received multiple standing ovations from the Golden 1 Centre crowd. He finished 10 of 12 from the field and had big-time shots to answer almost every time Cleveland tried to cut into the lead.

Cleveland’s LeBron James had a triple-double of 16 points, 14 assists and 10 rebounds.

Bulls 92, Knicks 87

Kris Dunn scored 17 points and hit a pair of free throws with 7.8 seconds remaining, and Lauri Markkanen finished with 12 points as Chicago rallied to beat New York.

Robin Lopez finished with 11 points for Chicago, which has won nine of its last 11 games. Justin Holiday, who capped the victory with two free throws in the closing seconds, also finished with 11 points in the victory.

Kristaps Porzingis led New York with 23 points to go along with 17 by Courtney Lee and 11 by Jarrett Jack. The Knicks lost their third straight game.

Warriors 126, Jazz 101

Kevin Durant ignited a third-quarter runaway with consecutive dunks, propelling Golden State to a victory over Utah.

Durant had 21 points, six rebounds, four assists and three blocked shots without playing in the fourth quarter. The Warriors improved to 9-1 since Stephen Curry left the line-up with a sprained right ankle earlier this month.

Playing their second road game in two nights, the Jazz led by as many as seven points in the second quarter and trailed only 48-47 at halftime. Rodney Hood paced Utah with 26 points.

Timberwolves 128, Nuggets 125 (OT)

Jimmy Butler scored 12 of his game-high 39 points in overtime to help Minnesota top Denver.

Butler picked up the slack in overtime after Karl-Anthony Towns and Taj Gibson fouled out and point guard Jeff Teague exited with an injury.

The Timberwolves won their fifth game in a row while halting the Nuggets’ winning streak at three games. Denver got 28 points from Will Barton.

Thunder 124,
Raptors 107

Paul George had 33 points, and Russell Westbrook added 30 points and 13 assists as Oklahoma City beat Toronto.

Carmelo Anthony and Steven Adams contributed 18 points apiece for the Thunder.

C.J. Miles led the Raptors with 20 points, and Jonas Valanciunas added 16 points. DeMar DeRozan had 15 points, but made just four of 16 shots from the floor.

Hawks 113, Wizards 99

Dennis Schroder erupted for 16 of his 21 points in the second half, leading Atlanta to a win over Washington.

Ersan Ilyasova chipped in with 20 points while Marco Belinelli helped with 19 off the bench for Atlanta. The victory marked the first time this season that the Hawks won consecutive games.

Bradley Beal led the Wizards with 20 points, and Markieff Morris scored 18. John Wall had 10 points and 11 rebounds in the loss.

Mavericks 98, Pacers 94

Dirk Nowitzki scored 15 points to lead six players in double figures in Dallas’ victory over Indiana.

Harrison Barnes and Yogi Ferrell each had 13 points for Dallas. Wesley Matthews and Dwight Powell added 12 points apiece, and Devin Harris scored 10 for the Mavericks, who shot 51.3 per cent from the field.

Indiana got 16 points apiece from Myles Turner, Lance Stephenson and Darren Collison. Stephenson added 15 rebounds.

Celtic 102, Hornets 91

Rookie Jayson Tatum scored 10 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter, and Al Horford and Kyrie Irving combined for 41 points as Boston closed out Charlotte.

Irving scored 21 points and handed out eight assists, and Horford added 20 points and 11 rebounds for the Celtics, who had lost three of their previous four games, including a Christmas Day defeat to the Washington Wizards.

Kemba Walker led the Hornets with 24 points.

Grizzlies 109, Lakers 99

A 32-point performance from guard Tyreke Evans helped Memphis capitalise on a sluggish Los Angeles offensive performance.

Jarell Martin had 20 points, Andrew Harrison recorded 15 points, Deyonta Davis scored 14 points, and Marc Gasol finished with 11 points, nine rebounds, five assists and three blocked shots for the Grizzlies.

With a shoulder injury sidelining rookie point guard Lonzo Ball, the Los Angeles offence stagnated. Brandon Ingram led the Lakers with 23 points.

Tyson Chandler slammed home an alley-oop dunk off a Dragan Bender inbounds feed with four-tenths of a second left, and the Phoenix Suns held off the Memphis Grizzlies for the second time in six days with a 99-97 win on Tuesday night.

Memphis tied the score at 97 when Jarell Martin slammed home a Tyreke Evans miss with six-tenths of a second left and the teams seems headed to overtime. With the subsequent inbounds play moved to midcourt, Bender threw the ball just over the far side of the rim, where Chandler was waiting to slam it down.

Devin Booker had 32 points in his return to the lineup for the Suns, who beat the Grizzlies 97-95 on December 21 when Evans missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer. TJ Warren finished with 17 points for Phoenix, which gave coach Jay Triano his 100th NBA win.

Evans had 25 points and Marc Gasol scored 18 for Memphis, which lost for the 20th time in 24 games.

Mavericks 98, Raptors 93

J.J. Barea scored a team-high 20 points to lead Dallas past Toronto.

Dirk Nowitzki (18 points), Harrison Barnes (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Maxi Kleber (15 points) also were the big producers for Dallas, which earned just their third win in 11 games.

Kyle Lowry led the Raptors with 23 points, Jonas Valanciunas finished with 17 points and 11 rebounds, and Serge Ibaka had 11 points and 12 rebounds. Toronto lost for just the second time in 14 games.

Spurs 109, Nets 97

Kawhi Leonard scored a season-high 21 points while seeing the court for a season-most 26 minutes as Antonio defeated Brooklyn.

LaMarcus Aldridge finished with 20 points and nine rebounds, and Pau Gasol nabbed his third double-double in a row with 15 points and a game-high 12 rebounds for the Spurs. Tony Parker scored 14 points, and Patty Mills and Ginobili tallied 11 each for San Antonio.

Caris LeVert hit on 8 of 11 shots and led Brooklyn with 18 points. Allen Crabbe contributed 15, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson hit for 13 points and Spencer Dinwiddie and Jarrett Allen had 12 points apiece for the Nets.

Pistons 107, Pacers 83

Tobias Harris scored 26 of his 30 points in the first half, and Detroit won for the fifth time in six games, thumping Indiana.

Andre Drummond supplied 21 points and 18 rebounds for the Pistons, who never trailed. Ish Smith added 12 points, and Reggie Bullock chipped in 11. Pistons point guard Reggie Jackson sprained his right ankle during the third quarter. Jackson had eight points and a season-high 13 assists prior to the injury.

Victor Oladipo, who came into the game averaging 25.3 points, scored a season-low 13 points for Indiana. Bojan Bogdanovic, Myles Turner and Domantas Sabonis added 10 points apiece for the Pacers.

Bulls 115, Bucks 106

Nikola Mirotic scored 24 points off the bench, and Kris Dunn finished with 20 as Chicago snapped a two-game losing streak.

Dunn bounced back from a 1-for-12 showing his last time out against the Boston Celtics. He hit 9 of 17 shots on Tuesday and added 12 assists. The Bulls shot 43.7 per cent from the floor and made 10 3-pointers.

Milwaukee got 28 points from Giannis Antetokounmpo and 22 from Eric Bledsoe. The Bucks committed a season-high 20 turnovers that the Bulls turned into 24 points.

Heat 107, Magic 89

Josh Richardson scored 14 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter to lead Miami past Orlando.

Wayne Ellington scored 18 points off the bench, including 12 in the fourth, for the Heat, who got starting centre Hassan Whiteside back from a 13-game knee-injury absence. Whiteside produced seven points and eight rebounds in 18 minutes.

Evan Fournier returned after missing eight games due to an injured right ankle and scored 14 points in 30 minutes for the Magic, who have lost nine games in a row. Orlando’s Elfrid Payton had 19 points, eight rebounds and six assists.

Nuggets 107, Jazz 83

Jamal Murray scored 22 points and grabbed eight rebounds, Trey Lyles added 16 points and eight rebounds against his former team, and Denver beat Utah.

Nikola Jokic had 13 points, seven rebounds and five assists before being ejected early in the fourth quarter, but the Nuggets closed it out to win their third straight.

Derrick Favours led Utah with 20 points, Jonas Jerebko scored 13 and rookie Donovan Mitchell had 13 points and six assists. The Jazz lost for the ninth time in 11 games.

Clippers 122, Kings 95

Montrezl Harrell scored 22 points and Lou Williams added 21 as Los Angeles’ bench helped power a victory over Sacramento.

The Clippers’ bench outscored the Kings’ reserves 72-43. Los Angeles rookie Jamil Wilson started and scored a career-high 17 points, 14 of which came in the first quarter. DeAndre Jordan added 13 points and 15 rebounds as the Clippers won for the third time in their past four games.

Willie Cauley-Stein had 17 points and seven rebounds for the Kings. Buddy Hield and Malachi Richardson each added 10 points for Sacramento.

Klay Thompson broke a late tie with a 3-pointer and Kevin Durant protected the lead with two key defensive plays on LeBron James, lifting the Golden State Warriors to a 99-92 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA’s marquee matchup on Christmas Day.

Neither team led by more than nine points in the tightly contested rematch of last spring’s NBA Finals, which the Warriors won in five games.

Durant, despite just 8-for-19 shooting, had 25 points to pace the Warriors, who have won six of their last seven at home against the Cavaliers.

Kevin Love had a game-high 31 points and 18 rebounds for the Cavaliers. James was held to 20 points on 7-for-18 shooting.

Sixers 105, Knicks 98

Joel Embiid had 25 points and 16 rebounds, and J.J. Redick added 24 points with four 3-pointers as Philadelphia snapped thier season-high five-game losing streak.

Enes Kanter had 31 points — including 14 in the third quarter — and 22 rebounds, and Kristaps Porzingis added 22 points for the Knicks, who have lost three of four after winning four straight.

Ben Simmons, who struggled offensively and finished with eight points, had a crucial steal and breakaway dunk with one minute, six seconds left, jumping in front of a Porzingis pass and taking it the other way to give the 76ers an eight-point cushion. He then forced a turnover on New York’s next possession, and Philadelphia was able to juice the clock late.

Wizards 111, Celtics 103

Kelly Oubre Jr. and Bradley Beal both scored five straight points during a late 12-0 run, leading Washington past Boston.

It was the first time the Celtics played at home on Christmas, and they were fighting an uphill battle throughout the game. They wiped out an 11-point third-quarter deficit and led by five before the Wizards (19-15) caught fire.

Beal scored 25 points and grabbed eight rebounds and John Wall had 21 points, 14 assists and five boards. Kyrie Irving and Jayson Tatum led the Celtics with 20 points apiece.

Thunder 112, Rockets 107

Russell Westbrook scored 31 points to lift Oklahoma City over Houston.

Westbrook outdueled James Harden, who finished with 29 points.

Paul George added 24 and Carmelo Anthony 20 for the Thunder, who extended their season-long winning streak to five games.

Trevor Ariza and Eric Gordon scored 20 for the Rockets, who lost for the third consecutive time after winning 14 consecutive games.

Timberwolves 121, Lakers 104

Taj Gibson and Jimmy Butler scored 24 points apiece and Minnesota continued their best start in 14 years with a victory against the Los Angeles Lakers.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 21 points and 10 rebounds and Jamal Crawford contributed 19 points off the bench for the Timberwolves, who shot a season-high 58.3 per cent from the floor.

Kyle Kuzma made 6 of 11 3-pointers and scored 31 points to lead the Lakers. Jordan Clarkson added 17 points and Julius Randle scored 16 off the bench.

LONDON — There was bad news for the 19 Premier League teams watching Manchester City disappear into the distance on Saturday, as City’s manager Pep Guardiola spelled out how his record-breakers can improve further.

Guardiola was speaking after City had beaten Bournemouth 4-0 at the Etihad Stadium, extending their extraordinary sequence to 17 successive league victories and 22 domestic matches without defeat all season.

It was the third league game in a row that rampant City have scored four goals, taking their total to 60 in 19 games. 

In 28 matches, their only defeat has been 2-1 away to Shakhtar Donetsk in a dead Champions League group match.

Realist more than romantic in his approach to the game, however, the experienced Catalan coach is a perfectionist who knows that perfection in football cannot be achieved.

Which is why he was willing to outline areas in which his vastly expensive squad can prove even more effective in the second half of the season, as they chase all three domestic trophies plus the European title.

Indeed, although City appear to be making quite enough scoring opportunities even against teams who simply sit back and defend, that is the area in which the manager wants improvement.

“We have to learn, to improve and attack this kind of defence and I think that is going to happen,” Guardiola told reporters.

“Our target is what we have to do to find a solution. It’s not a target to be perfect, that doesn’t exist.

“Always teams can improve. When they defend with 10 [men] in the box, we can attack more fluently, make more chances.”

That is a worrying prospect for their opponents, given that three players in Raheem Sterling, Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus are already in double figures for the season, with Leroy Sane and Kevin de Bruyne not far behind.

With City so far ahead of the rest in performance and points, debate is already turning to questions like how many trophies they can win, whether they could remain unbeaten in the last 19 league games and if they are the best team of the 25-year Premier League era. 

Martin Keown, who played 10 games in defence for the Arsenal team that went unbeaten in the 2003-04 league season and is now a pundit, told the BBC: “You’ve really got to ask yourself ‘is this the best team we’ve ever seen in the Premier League?’

“They’re achieving excellence in their performance week in, week out. It’s a stroll in the park every week for these boys.”

Meanwhile, City are 13 points ahead of Manchester United, who were criticised by manager Jose Mourinho for “childish” mistakes in defence and attack after conceding an equaliser in the fourth minute of added time at Leicester.

Two goals by Juan Mata had put them in front after Jamie Vardy’s 50th Premier League goal for the home side, and Leicester’s Daniel Amartey was sent off.

But with Anthony Martial and Jesse Lingard having missed clear chances and Chris Smalling limping, United allowed Harry Maguire to poke home Marc Albrighton’s cross.

“It was an easy match to win,” Mourinho said. “Childish in their box and childish in our box, we were punished.”

MADRID — Real Madrid’s hopes of retaining their La Liga title appeared to be fading fast as goals from Luis Suarez, Lionel Messi and Aleix Vidal propelled Barcelona to a 3-0 win in the ‘Clasico’ on Saturday, lifting them 14-points clear of their rivals in the standings. 

Suarez capitalised on wide open space in Madrid’s midfield to knock in a simple pass from Sergi Roberto following a breakaway move in the 54th minute. That opened the scoring after a tense, but tight first half in the early afternoon sun at the Santiago Bernabeu.

Messi hammered in the second goal from the penalty spot 20 minutes later after Dani Carvajal was sent off for blocking a goal-bound header from Paulinho with his arm after Real were again easily picked apart on the counter attack.

Catalan defender turned winger Vidal hit the third in injury time to pile more misery on Madrid, who looked unrecognisable from the side who crushed Barca 5-1 on aggregate in the Spanish Super Cup in August.

Real failed to capitalise on their chances in the first half as Karim Benzema’s header came off the post and Cristiano Ronaldo was denied by the flailing leg of Barca goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen. However, the European and Liga champions collapsed after the interval and Barca took full advantage.

Barca are nine points clear of nearest challengers Atletico Madrid at the top of the standings although Valencia could climb to second and close the gap to eight points later on Saturday if they beat Villarreal. Real are 14 points adrift but have a game in hand.

Instead of the usual late evening kickoff time, Spain’s premier club fixture took place at 1200 GMT in a bid to capture a record television audience in Asia. 

It was also played in the backdrop of a political crisis in the country, coming two days after elections in Catalonia in which separatist parties won a majority.

Real’s supporters unfurled a giant banner before kickoff to boast of the unprecedented five trophies the team had won in 2017. The volume in the packed Bernabeu was cranked up when Ronaldo headed a corner in off the crossbar in under two minutes, but the offside flag halted the premature celebrations.

Barca, the only unbeaten team in the league, took a less active role than they have in recent games at the Bernabeu, with their best chances before the break falling to Brazilian midfielder Paulinho.

They created a number of opportunities after the interval, however, and could have punished Real even further than they did.

And Real fans turned on Real manager Zinedine Zidane after he opted to bring on Nacho Fernandez rather than attackers such as Marco Asensio, Gareth Bale and Isco.

Madrid started the game with four central midfielders in the side.

As a result, Asensio, Bale and Isco were forced to settle for a place on the bench.

But Zidane opted to overlook his attacking starlets by bringing on Nacho instead.

The decision left the crowd stunned with Barcelona now primed to win the title.