Luton Town 1-2 Man City: Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish complete comeback

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola called on his players to prove their doubters wrong after his side ended their four-match winless run in the Premier League with a come-from-behind victory over Luton Town.

Guardiola's side were facing back-to-back league defeats for the first time since December 2019 when Elijah Adebayo gave Luton the lead in first-half stoppage time, rising highest at the back post to head in Andros Townsend's cross.

But Bernardo Silva latched on to a loose ball in the penalty area and equalised with a fine curling effort.

Three minutes later City completed the turnaround when Jack Grealish converted Julian Alvarez's low cross.

"Four games we didn't win - we are not used to that," Guardiola told BBC Match of the Day.

"People say 'City is over already'. This is the challenge that we have ahead of us. Prove them wrong and still be there."

Victory means the defending champions stay fourth, four points behind leaders Liverpool, while third-from-bottom Luton are now four points off safety following Everton's win over Chelsea.

City record first league win in five weeks

City came into Sunday's fixture on the back of their joint-longest run without a win under Guardiola.

While key players Rodri and Grealish returned after missing Wednesday's loss to Aston Villa through suspension, leading scorer Erling Haaland was absent having picked up a foot injury in training.

At half-time there was a real sense of jeopardy for City, who would have been seven points off Liverpool with a loss.

But in the second half, despite not having Haaland's imposing presence up front, City returned to their ruthless selves.

Just before their goals they hit the bar through Ruben Diaz's thunderous shot following Nathan Ake's cutback.

And once they took the lead they held Luton at arm's length to record their first league win since beating Bournemouth 6-1 on 4 November.

"The way they run and fight coming here and behave like we behaved, I am really, really, really proud," said Guardiola.

"We were seven points behind before the game. Now we are four, so we are a little bit closer. In my experience in this country the Premier League is so long, so it never ends."

Luton slip further adrift

Luton have faced last season's top two in the space of five days and have taken the lead in both matches only to be stung by second-half comebacks.

It is a testament to how far the Hatters have risen up the football pyramid in recent seasons, and a bouncing Kenilworth Road was again witness to Luton going ahead against a powerhouse of English football.

However, outside of Adebayo's goal, the hosts were limited to half-chances. And, despite two promising performances, Edwards' side have lost their past three matches and won only one of their past 10.

Luton were also fortunate not to have been reduced to 10 men in the 70th minute when Jacob Brown caught Phil Foden above the Englishman's ankle. But, after a video assistant review, the Scotland forward went unpunished.

"We can take confidence; we are playing well, performing well," Luton manager Rob Edwards told Match of the Day.

"We tried to not let them get their rhythm, get their game going. The goal was an excellent example of that.

"(Defeat) is frustrating, especially when you go 1-0 up. Full credit to Manchester City - that's what top teams do."

A gap is re-emerging between the bottom three and the rest of the division. At half-time on Sunday Luton were a point above the relegation zone in the as-things-stand table.

But their loss, coupled with Everton's win, means they ended the day further adrift in the bottom three and in desperate need of points.

Player of the match

AdebayoElijah Adebayo

Luton Town

Manchester City

Squad number25Player nameAkanjiAverage rating

6.02

Squad number27Player nameMatheus NunesAverage rating

5.63

Squad number5Player nameStonesAverage rating

5.47

Squad number10Player nameGrealishAverage rating

5.37

Squad number47Player nameFodenAverage rating

5.34

Squad number19Player nameÁlvarezAverage rating

5.24

Squad number20Player nameBernardo SilvaAverage rating

5.15

Squad number16Player nameRodriAverage rating

4.90

Squad number6Player nameAkéAverage rating

4.84

Squad number31Player nameEdersonAverage rating

4.78

Squad number3Player nameRúben DiasAverage rating

4.75

Squad number2Player nameWalkerAverage rating

4.69

Squad number24Player nameGvardiolAverage rating

4.68

Squad number8Player nameKovacicAverage rating

4.59

Line-ups

Luton

Formation 3-4-3

24Kaminski

15Mengi4Lockyer29Bell

45Doughty13Nakamba6Barkley26Giles

30Townsend11Adebayo19Brown

• 24Kaminski
• 15Mengi
• 4LockyerSubstituted forClarkat 90'minutes
• 29Bell
• 45DoughtyBooked at 77mins
• 13NakambaBooked at 58minsSubstituted forSambi Lokongaat 72'minutes
• 6Barkley
• 26GilesSubstituted forChongat 84'minutes
• 30TownsendSubstituted forMorrisat 72'minutes
• 11Adebayo
• 19Brown

Substitutes

• 5Andersen
• 8Berry
• 9Morris
• 14Chong
• 17Mpanzu
• 18Clark
• 23Krul
• 28Sambi Lokonga
• 38Johnson

Man City

Formation 4-2-3-1

31Ederson

2Walker3Rúben Dias6Aké24Gvardiol

16Rodri8Kovacic

20Bernardo Silva47Foden10Grealish

19Álvarez

• 31Ederson
• 2Walker
• 3Rúben Dias
• 6Aké
• 24GvardiolSubstituted forStonesat 69'minutes
• 16RodriBooked at 73mins
• 8KovacicSubstituted forNunesat 83'minutes
• 20Bernardo Silva
• 47FodenSubstituted forAkanjiat 90+3'minutes
• 10Grealish
• 19Álvarez

Substitutes

• 4Phillips
• 5Stones
• 18Ortega
• 21Gómez
• 25Akanji
• 27Nunes
• 33Carson
• 52Bobb
• 82Lewis

Referee:Tim Robinson

Attendance:11,047

Match Stats

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