MATCH REPORT AND PLAYER RATINGS - TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR 0-2 MANCHESTER CITY

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Manchester City took a huge step towards clinching their record breaking fourth Premier League title in a row with a huge victory at their bogey ground against Tottenham Hotspur, thanks to a brace from Erling Haaland.

The 23 year old's two second half goals - a tap in following a well worked team move and an emphatic penalty late on - were enough for City to overcome a gruelling first 45 minutes to put themselves within three points of securing the title.

Spurs were arguably the better side in the first half, as Ange Postecoglou's men pressed City very aggressively when playing out from the back and looked to overcrowd the middle with regular midfielder James Maddison operating as a false nine when in possession.

They didn't threaten City's goal however, but nor did the Blues challenge Tottenham's, with the closest either side came to a goal coming from Phil Foden's close range volley following a sliced clearance from Pierre-Emile Hojberg, which was well saved by Guglielmo Vicario.

The second period was much better from City. They showed grit and determination with their defending, and strung a few lovely patient passing moves together to take the sting out of Spurs's momentum.

It only took them five minutes before a move involving Foden, Bernardo Silva and Kevin de Bruyne was tapped home in the six yard box from Haaland for goal number 37 of the season so far.

Haaland's goal didn't deter Spurs, however, and by bringing on Dejan Kulusevski, they looked more creative and were causing problems for City.

The woes continued for the Blues, as Ederson was forced off with injury for the fourth time this season after receiving a clattering at the far post from Cristian Romero, leaving the Brazilian with a nasty looking black eye that was interfering with his vision.

Stefan Ortega-Moreno came onto the pitch, and didn't put a foot wrong all match, saving twice from Kulusevski soon after coming on, before City were able to take control of the game again with short passes in the middle of the park.

But completely against the run of play, the otherwise completely solid and dependable Manuel Akani was robbed on the halfway line by Brennan Johnson, leaving Son Heung-Min - a man who loves a goal against Manchester City - clean in on goal with all of City's defenders behind him.

Son was quickly nullified by Ortega, however, who came out well to close down the angles and save the effort from the Korean forward and keep City ahead in the game.

And that save from the German goalkeeper paid off when just five minutes later, substitute Jeremy Doku was clipped in the box to give City a penalty, which was lashed into the top corner emphatically by Haaland to seal the deal for the blues.

Up against a tough side in Spurs, City held their own in a fixture they've typically struggled in before. The first half was tough - but that was due to usual top performers such as Rodri, De Bruyne, Bernardo and Ruben Dias looking loose and sloppy.

But they improved in the second half, and the top performers from the first period - Foden, Akanji Mateo Kovacic and Josko Gvardiol, alongside Haaland doing what Haaland does - stepped up their game a notch to drag City over the line.

A victory against David Moyes's West Ham United this weekend will be enough for City to make history and win the league for the fourth consecutive season.

The Blues will head into that game with confidence, having found their strongest starting XI with a system that suits the players who are most in form at this moment in time.

After that, it's a trip to Wembley Stadium to face local rivals Manchester United for a second consecutive year in the FA Cup final, a game in which they'll be hopeful of winning with United's struggles with form and injuries.

Here are the player ratings from the monumental victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium:

Ederson - 6.5/10 - Made a good stop from Rodrigo Bentancur in the first half in an otherwise uneventful match for the 30 year old, with all of Spurs's chances coming when Ortega was in net.

Walker - 7.5/10 - Locked Son up for the vast majority of the match and offered a threat down the right with his pace.

Akanji - 7/10 - Marked down only for being dispossessed cheaply in the build up to a huge Tottenham chance, but it was another solid performance from Akanji at the heart of defence.

Dias - 6/10 - A really shaky first half from Dias, as he often looked less alert than his fellow defenders. Improved somewhat in the second half, but the likelihood is that Nathan Ake will reclaim his place in the side against West Ham, assuming he is fit enough to start.

Gvardiol - 8/10 - City's best performer in the first half and continued his levels into the second period, with his defending and footwork as good as it has been in every recent match.

Rodri - 7.5/10 - Below par in the first half, but improved in the second period along with the rest of the side.

Kovacic - 8/10 - One of the better performers in the first half with his ball carrying and aggressive tackling in midfield, and stepped up another level in the second as Rodri also improved.

Bernardo - 7/10 - Poor in the first half, but much better in the second, as he got more involved in the game, contributing to City's first goal by slipping De Bruyne in behind on the right hand side to cross to Haaland.

De Bruyne - 7/10 - Very poor in the first half, but much improved in the second half, and came up with the game changing piece of quality to set up Haaland to give City the all important lead.

Foden - 8/10 - One of City's better players in the first half, getting involved a lot with plenty of touches from deep. Continued his good performance in the second half, and played a big role in the penalty with a beautiful volleyed through pass to Doku in the build up to the foul.

Haaland - 8.5/10 - Led the line well by holding the ball up well and winning aerial duels against Spurs's defenders, on top of finishing his chances in clinical fashion.

Substitutes: Ortega-Moreno - 9/10 - The performance that solidified my long held opinion that Ortega is the best backup goalkeeper in the world, and that City are in no worse hands with him than Ederson. He passed the ball well and made a few wonderful saves to keep City in the league and effectively help them put one hand on the Premier League trophy.

Doku - 8/10 - Started out sloppily, but after his first five minutes on the pitch, Doku improved to have an electrifying cameo, winning the penalty for the second goal and looking a general threat in his entire time on the pitch.

Alvarez - Not enough time to make an impact.