DANNY MURPHY: Ederson is the bedrock of Manchester City’s rhythm and tempo… the Brazilian is the BEST ball-playing goalkeeper ever

We can praise the four goals of Erling Haaland and Footballer of the Year Phil Foden, but do not underestimate the importance of Ederson.

We saw on Saturday why Pep Guardiola remains with the Brazilian as his number 1. That is not only because of the traditional aspects of goalkeeping, but also because of his feet. He has better vision and distribution than some midfielders I played with.

The best example was the pass through the lines to Foden, who helped set up City’s fourth goal. It was something that many fielders would not be able to do.

Ederson’s decision-making is the foundation of City’s rhythm and pace. When opponents are cautious and drop out, Ederson keeps the passing carousel going by simply knocking the ball. When his defenders are under pressure, he has both the awareness and technical ability to execute the longer Hollywood passes.

There has never been a better ball-playing goalkeeper. His contribution to City’s success must be recognised.

NEUTRAL SHOULD BE IN THE CORNER OF ARSENAL

I have nothing against City, but it would be healthy if Arsenal won the title this season and ended the current monopoly.

Hats off to City as they become the first club in history to remain champions for four years in a row. My concern is where it ends. Six, seven years? Nine like Rangers and Celtic have done in Scotland? 11 Like Bayern in Germany?

Winning breeds winning and if City finish top despite missing Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne for long stretches, that’s a problem.

Arsenal has a new manager in Mikel Arteta with a good philosophy and a solid defense. Neutrals should advocate for them to revive competition.

Unfortunately, I fear that both teams will win their remaining matches, leaving City champions by a few points. The only threat to City is the trip to Spurs. Tottenham have the attacking capabilities to worry them, but will need to play significantly better than recent performances. Ironic that Arsenal’s best chances lie with their bitter rivals.

CRIMINAL DECISIONS Despair

Both Arsenal and City were lucky with big penalty decisions and that is demoralizing.

At lunch, Kai Havertz left his leg in to invite contact and got the decision for Arsenal’s first goal. I don’t blame him, especially since everyone does it these days.

There was a period when the authorities tried to stop this form of cheating. Panels were set up to punish players who did it – I know because I’ve been on a few.

The only way to prevent players from fooling officials is to have some sort of deterrent. Otherwise, Havertz won’t be the only one to benefit.

Kai Havertz was awarded a penalty by referee David Coote after making contact with goalkeeper Mark Travers

City were lucky themselves then. There was a coming together between Josko Gvardiol and Rayan Ait-Nouri as the Wolves defender cleared the ball, but nothing else.

If the referee wrongly awards a penalty, which is possible if he watches it in real time, it is up to the VAR to intervene and suggest that he check the monitor to make sure he has not made an obvious mistake made.

Not for the first time, yesterday’s VAR at The Etihad, Stuart Attwell, showed a lack of football understanding. He should have told the referee if he wanted to change his penalty.

It’s not complicated and it baffles me that officials don’t have that feel for the game.