Today’s back pages: Man City boss Guardiola hails Jesus for his ‘goaly trinity’
A round up of the sport headlines from UK newspapers on 12 December
Pep hails Jesus
Independent reports that Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has hailed Gabriel Jesus after the striker hit a hat-trick in last night’s 4-1 Champions League win at Dinamo Zagreb.
Midfielder Phil Foden was also on the scoresheet as City finished top of group C. City and group runners-up Atalanta are through to Monday’s last-16 draw.
Jesus’s “goaly trinity” was praised by Guardiola, says the Daily Mirror, as City hit the 500th goal of his Etihad reign.
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On Jesus’s performance Guardiola said: “We are incredibly delighted with Gabby. A striker needs goals and he scored three. Hopefully it can help his mood to be incredibly positive.
“Gabriel is an incredible fighter, how he helps us to defend and does absolutely everything, but a striker needs goals and that is important for him, for the team, for everything.”
After the match 22-year-old Jesus said: “It’s special. When I was young, I’d think about the Champions League - I wanted to play, I wanted to score, I wanted the ball. For me it’s a very special moment when I score goals and a hat-trick as well.”
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Spurs lose in Germany
Tottenham Hotspur finished second in group B but suffered another defeat against Bayern Munich.
Earlier in the group campaign Spurs lost 7-2 at home to Bayern and the north London club were “Mullered again”, says the Daily Star, with the Germans winning last night’s match 3-1 to finish top of the table.
Kingsley Coman opened the scoring on 14 minutes for Bayern but Ryan Sessegnon equalised for Spurs on his first start for the club. Goals from Thomas Muller and Philippe Coutinho secured the win for the Bundesliga giants.
Man City, Spurs, Liverpool and Chelsea are through to the Champions League last-16 draw, which takes place on Monday at 11am (GMT). The draw will be live on BT Sport 1.
Today’s newspaper back pages
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