Sporting 4-1 Manchester City: Viktor Gyokeres scores a hat-trick as Ruben Amorim’s side beat Man City

New Manchester United coach Ruben Amorim secured one of his biggest Sporting wins in his final home game, handing Manchester City a third consecutive defeat for the first time since April 2018.

It was City’s heaviest defeat since September 2020 and only the second time in his trophy-laden spell at City that Pep Guardiola was beaten in three consecutive games in a single season.

To cap off a thoroughly depressing evening for City, star striker Erling Haaland hit the crossbar with a penalty in the second half.

Sporting’s Scandinavian superstar Viktor Gyokeres – formerly of Coventry City – did much of the damage with an excellent hat-trick.

The Swede equalized Phil Foden’s early opener in the 38th minute and then kept his cool after the break to beat Ederson twice from the penalty spot.

The first of those penalties was a disastrous start to the second half for City as they fell behind seconds after the restart when Maximiliano Araujo latched on to a through ball and fired into the corner.

Sporting regulars in the media gallery said the victory was the biggest single game of Amorim’s tenure, which still has a game in hand in Braga on Sunday.

The fear in this part of Lisbon must be that the momentum of seven consecutive wins in all competitions cannot be sustained. Not that it dampened the celebration after the final whistle.

As for Amorim, he joked on Monday that a win could mean United fans would compare him to Sir Alex Ferguson.

That might be a bit far-fetched. But there couldn’t have been a better way to bank a huge loan amount.