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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Sport
James Quinlan & Kyle Newbould

Micah Richards criticises Etihad boos during Man City vs Tottenham

Micah Richards believes the smattering of boos heard during Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur were 'not acceptable.'

City were sucker-punched into a 2-0 deficit at half-time, thanks to two goals inside three minutes from Dejan Kulusevski and Emerson Royal. The home side dominated much of the ball and created plenty of chances, but were shell-shocked when Ederson's risky pass to Rodri ended with Swedish winger Kulusevski stroking home on 44 minutes.

And when the Brazilian parried Harry Kane's shot in first-half injury time, the ball fell kindly to Royal who headed in a quick-fire second. Pep Guardiola's side looked on course for a third consecutive defeat across all competitions, points dropped at home to Spurs adding to a dismal week in which they were knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Southampton before Saturday's defeat at Manchester United.

LIVE: City vs Spurs highlights and reaction

Fans vented their frustrations when referee Simon Hooper blew for half-time as boos echoed around the Etihad from a large minority - a reaction that former City right-back Richards disagreed with.

"That’s not acceptable," Richards told Sky Sports at half-time. "City have brought joy for so many years now, they’ve won four leagues out of five, so you can’t be booing. I’m always with the fans but you can’t be booing after that."

Guardiola's side came flying out the blocks after the break as Julian Alvarez and Erling Haaland had the home side level by the 55th minute. And the comeback was complete swiftly and efficiently when Riyad Mahrez fired past Hugo Lloris' near post just past the hour.

Spurs pressed to find a third goal of their own but were left wanting when the Algerian raced through again on 89 minutes, capitalising on Clement Lenglet's mistake before dinking a lovely finish into the net.

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