Manchester City earned their first Premier League home win in almost three months as they battled past Watford at Etihad Stadium.
The fourth-placed Blues, looking to avoid a third top-flight defeat in a row, led when an unmarked Pablo Zabaleta calmly side-footed in Kevin de Bruyne’s deep cross.
Raheem Sterling clipped the Watford bar after the break, before Odion Ighalo poked over the away team’s best chance.
And the Hornets, who drop to 11th, were punished when David Silva tucked in a late second on his 200th league appearance after a swift City break.
But the one negative for Blues manager Pep Guardiola was Germany midfielder Ilkay Gundogan suffering a serious knee injury that the Spaniard said will keep him out “for several months”.
Cast your mind back to the end of September. Manchester City had won their first 10 matches under Pep Guardiola, including their opening six Premier League games to move four points clear at the top of the table.
Fast forward to mid-December and the picture is less rosy.
Guardiola’s side have since dropped from the summit, losing ground on their title rivals after winning just four of their previous 15 matches going into Watford’s visit.
Questions have been raised about the acclaimed Spanish manager’s methods, which brought him such great success at Barcelona and Bayern Munich.
The Blues had not won a top-flight match in front of their own fans since that 10th successive win – a 4-0 victory against Bournemouth on 17 September.
And while their performance lacked the vigour and verve of those early days under Guardiola, the Blues will surely be more than content with a gritty display that keeps them in fourth position.
“It has been a long time without a win playing at home, it has been strange,” said Zabaleta.
City remain seven points behind leaders Chelsea, now a point behind Liverpool and Arsenal – with the Gunners visiting the Etihad on Sunday.