Manchester City tallied up their ninth consecutive Premier League victory last night when they hosted West Ham United at the Etihad and Pep Guardiola will no doubt be feeling confident in his team's chances of securing another title.
The Sky Blues applied more pressure to Arsenal upon their latest win, and went one point ahead to knock their rivals off the top spot with just five games remaining in the title race.
It was business as usual on the blue side of Manchester last night as City dominated every area of the pitch with 69% possession, more shots on goal (16 v 6), more big chances created (6 v 1), more accurate passes completed (656 v 255) and more tackles won (16 v 12).
In the first half, the Hammers did well to hold off their opponents, putting on a confident defensive performance and keeping the attacking threat as quiet as possible to stay in the game when the whistle was blown at half-time.
In the final 45 minutes, City had warmed into the game and finally broke down David Moyes' resilient side when Nathan Ake found the opening goal to give his team the lead in the 49th minute, quickly followed up by a second from the inevitable Erling Haaland and perfectly finished off by Phil Foden with a fantastic strike in the 85th minute.
Indeed, Haaland stole the headlines with his phenomenal record-breaking performance that saw the Norwegian titan become the Premier League's highest-scoring player in a season with 35 goals and counting.
However, it was Ake who was Guardiola's unsung hero upon his return to the starting XI last night with a phenomenal all-round performance that led City closer to their seventh league title.
How did Ake get on vs West Ham?
There is no doubt that Ake has played an integral part in Man City's dominance over the second half of the season and has been a breath of fresh air in the back line.
The talented defender had not started a league game since the beginning of April with an injury issue keeping him sidelined over the last few weeks and his explosive return to action last night proved exactly why he has been a constant feature throughout.
Over his 77-minute performance, the £90k-per-week ace – who has been hailed as "unbelievable" by teammate Jack Grealish – won 100% of his ground and aerial duels combined in a bullish and combative defensive
Furthermore, the Dutchman completed 53 accurate passes and had 68 touches of the ball, as well as winning two tackles, completing two clearances and, of course, scoring the all-important opening goal.
Guardiola will surely be delighted that Ake had no trouble making an instant impact upon his return to the starting side, as the manager had claimed in January that “without Nathan right now, we cannot play good."
With that being said, City are at a fantastic advantage now that Ake is available for selection again and will likely continue to play a huge role in the team in their pursuit of a monumental treble-winning season.