In a game that was akin to a breathless five-a-side, Manchester City slipped from mastering Tottenham to a sloppiness that should, privately, infuriate Pep Guardiola more than Simon Hooper’s odd decision in added time to wave play on before the referee awarded a foul on Erling Haaland after the No 9 had sent Jack Grealish through.
The decision led Haaland and his colleagues to surround the referee – which may provoke an FA charge against City for failing to control their players – but material to the title race is how the champions slip to three points behind Arsenal, 14 matches in.
