Manchester City had to come from behind to defeat Luton Town away from home on Sunday afternoon, bringing an end to the club\u2019s four-game winless run in the Premier League with a 2-1 win.<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cLiverpool and Arsenal have struggled to win there,\u201d Pep Guardiola warned ahead of City\u2019s visit to Hertfordshire. \u201cIt will be no different for us.\u201d And so it proved.<\/p>\n Elijah Adebayo\u2019s header on the cusp of half-time had Luton ahead and dreaming. But Bernardo Silva and Jack Grealish fired City in front, keeping Guardiola\u2019s side within four points of leaders Liverpool.<\/p>\n Manchester City limped into the contest reeling from arguably the most convincing defeat of Guardiola\u2019s tenure, a 1-0 loss to Aston Villa which the Catalan coach likened to a \u201cpunch in the face\u201d.<\/p>\n Erling Haaland\u2019s\u00a0enforced absence\u00a0through injury was another blow for the champions ahead of kick off and Adebayo connected with City\u2019s glass chin to nudge Luton in front seconds before the half-time whistle.<\/p>\n The visitors had been utterly dominant across the opening 45 minutes of the contest, denying\u00a0Luton\u00a0a sniff of Ederson\u2019s goal while forcing Thomas Kaminski into a flurry of saves.<\/p>\n Yet, the game was still goalless when Ross Barkley pirouetted past Rodri and Bernardo Silva in his own half, sparking a rare surge upfield. Andros Townsend swung an inviting cross to the back post for Adebayo to gobble up, towering above Kyle Walker and Ruben Dias to nod the hosts into a scarcely believable lead.<\/p>\n Guardiola certainly couldn\u2019t get his head around the situation. City\u2019s frazzled coach argued fiercely with the referee as both sides went down the tunnel at half-time.<\/p>\n The champions may not have had Haaland in their ranks but Rodri was back. Faced with Luton\u2019s obdurate low block, the talismanic midfielder barged through the tangerine mass, driving into the box and the home team\u2019s captain Tom Lockyer. The ball broke favourably for\u00a0Bernardo Silva\u00a0to take a swing, picking out the bottom corner with City\u2019s 15th attempt of the afternoon.<\/p>\n City\u2019s 16th effort also found the back of the net. Much like Rodri, Jack Grealish had been suspended for the trip to Villa Park. Upon his return, Grealish capped off a crisp counterattack, hauling City ahead within three minutes of their equaliser.<\/p>\n There were some nervy moments over the final half-hour, with Guardiola delivering a nod of respect to Rob Edwards\u2019 side by making a substitution solely to waste time. Yet, City held on to rediscover what winning felt like.<\/p>\n Elijah Adebayo has scored in consecutive appearances for Luton \/ JUSTIN TALLIS\/GettyImages<\/p>\n GK: Thomas Kaminski \u2013 8\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Despite conceding twice, Kaminski managed to maintain his miraculous form, capable of rebuffing efforts from range and scampering off his line.<\/p>\n CB: Teden Mengi \u2013 6\/10 \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0Stayed tucked in to make a compact backline and limit the half-spaces that City so love to exploit.<\/p>\n CB: Tom Lockyer \u2013 6\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Faced with a wondering forward, Lockyer followed Alvarez even when he dropped onto the halfway line. This approach paid dividends for much of the contest.<\/p>\n CB: Amari\u2019i Bell \u2013 4\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Gave away the ball for City\u2019s second goal, getting tangled up by his own feet.<\/p>\n RWB: Alfie Doughty \u2013 5\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Offered a consistent threat from set pieces but struggled against Josko Gvardiol in open play.<\/p>\n CM: Marvelous Nakamba \u2013 6\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Snapping into a flurry of tackles in a busy midfield display.<\/p>\n CM: Ross Barkley \u2013 7\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>The risk of spinning inside his own half with two opposition players around him was rewarded with Luton\u2019s opener.<\/p>\n LWB: Ryan Giles \u2013 6\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Not overly involved in the final third, keeping his passing simple and safe.<\/p>\n RW: Andros Townsend \u2013 7\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Full of zip and fizz, the 32-year-old delivered an exquisite cross to crack open the champions.<\/p>\n ST: Elijah Adebayo \u2013 8\/10 \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0A physical mismatch against almost every defender in the division, Adebayo\u2019s aerial supremacy was evident outside of his goal.<\/p>\n LW: Jacob Brown \u2013 4\/10 \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0Leapt two-footed into Phil Foden yet escaped a red card, somehow.<\/p>\n SUB: Carlton Morris (72\u2032 for Townsend) \u2013 5\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n SUB: Albert Sambi Lokonga (72\u2032 for Nakamba) \u2013 5\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n SUB: Tahith Chong (84\u2032 for Giles) \u2013 N\/A<\/strong><\/p>\n SUB: Jordan Clark (90\u2032 for Lockyer) \u2013 N\/A<\/strong><\/p>\n Subs not used: Tim Krul (GK), Mads Juel Andersen, Joseph Johnson, Pelly-Ruddock Mpanzu, Luke Berry<\/em><\/p>\n Rob Edwards \u2013 5\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>On his first anniversary as Luton boss, Edwards\u2019 side almost produced the ultimate victory of his tenure. Regardless of the result, Luton succeeded in getting City \u201cout of their comfort zone\u201d.<\/p>\n Josko Gvardiol (left) was part of a backline that once again failed to keep a clean sheet \/ Shaun Botterill\/GettyImages<\/p>\n GK: Ederson \u2013 6\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Outrageously composed even with a giant orange-clad figure haring towards him.<\/p>\n RB: Kyle Walker \u2013 4\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Pushed right up the wing to overload Luton\u2019s back five but not nearly as useful in City\u2019s defensive third.<\/p>\n CB: Ruben Dias \u2013 4\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Bullied by Adebayo, the form that Dias briefly seemed to have recovered against Villa swiftly evaporated again.<\/p>\n CB: Nathan Ake \u2013 6\/10 \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0Carried out what sporadic defensive work he had without a fuss.<\/p>\n LB: Josko Gvardiol \u2013 5\/10 \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0Unusually adventurous, cantering up the left flank regularly with mixed success.<\/p>\n CM: Rodri \u2013 8\/10 \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0The one tackle that he missed in midfield was punished by Luton\u2019s opener. Otherwise, Rodri brought his usual suffocating influence.<\/p>\n CM: Mateo Kovacic \u2013 3\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Painfully uninspired on the ball, tamely rolling it square when faced with the faintest whisper of orange.<\/p>\n AM: Phil Foden \u2013 7\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Collected the ball between the lines superbly, dancing between the gaps but without that end product.<\/p>\n RW: Bernardo Silva \u2013 7\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>A right winger in name only, sauntering everywhere from the base of midfield to the left flank. Unsurprisingly, Bernardo was in the right place to<\/p>\n ST: Julian Alvarez \u2013 6\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Subdued for large swathes but forced the turnover before teeing up City\u2019s second goal.<\/p>\n LW: Jack Grealish \u2013 6\/10 \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0Took his goal well but had spent more of the match on the outside peering in.<\/p>\n SUB: John Stones (69\u2032 for Gvardiol) \u2013 5\/10<\/strong><\/p>\n SUB: Matheus Nunes (83\u2032 for Kovacic) \u2013 N\/A<\/strong><\/p>\n SUB: Manuel Akanji (90\u2032 for Foden) \u2013 N\/A<\/strong><\/p>\n Subs not used: Stefan Ortega (GK), Scott Carson (GK), Rico Lewis, Kalvin Phillips, Sergio Gomez, Oscar Bobb<\/em><\/p>\n Pep Guardiola \u2013 6\/10 \u2013\u00a0<\/strong>Seemed to be rattled at one point but didn\u2019t let that nervous energy seep into his side, who were worthy winners.<\/p>\n
\nHow the game unfolded<\/h3>\n
\nLuton player ratings (3-4-3)<\/h2>\n
![\"FBL-ENG-PR-LUTON-MAN](\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/01hha45e0ymp7qm4efch.jpg\" "\\"FBL-ENG-PR-LUTON-MAN")
<\/figure>\n
\nSubstitutes<\/h3>\n
\nManager<\/h3>\n
\nMan City player ratings (4-2-3-1)<\/h2>\n
![\"Josko](\"https:\/\/www.ghanamma.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/01hha4mwkzxd7hvbrpzh.jpg\" "\\"Josko")
<\/figure>\n
\nSubstitutes<\/h3>\n
\nManager<\/h3>\n