Darren Ferguson spoke of his pride after promotion-chasing Peterborough dismantled injury-ravaged Burton in a 4-0 Sky Bet League One rout.
The Peterborough manager’s only frustration would have been that his team did not rack up a more emphatic scoreline as a host of other chances went begging in another dominant performance at London Road.
First-half goals from Joel Randall and Ephron Mason-Clark put the hosts in cruise control, then a Cole Stockton own goal and Kwame Poku’s close range finish completed the rout after the break.
Dino Maamria’s patched-up Brewers side were on the rack for most of this one-sided encounter, although Stockton nearly capitalised on a mistake from Posh goalkeeper Nicholas Bilokapic, only to see his first-half stoppage time volley headed off the line by Josh Knight.
It was a rare moment of panic for fifth-placed Peterborough, who have dropped just two points from their last six home matches – a run which includes a 5-0 derby day demolition job on local rivals Cambridge.
Ferguson said: “When you’re a manager and you enjoy watching your team play, that’s always a good sign.
“In the last two home games I’ve seen a different level of maturity. Especially when we’re 3-0 up to Cambridge at half-time, they’ve gone on and been really professional. And today, the same again.
“The quality has always been there for me. It’s just getting it on a consistent basis now.
“These games are never easy. Burton are a decent team. We spoke about how to match them in every area, and we did that.
“These games are better results for me than when we play against your Portsmouths and your Derbys. Those game just take care of themselves. These are the games you’ve got to have the correct mentality in, and make sure you do the basics right.
“We started really strongly and were aggressive. We spoke about that in terms of having the correct mentality in a game that everyone on the outside would expect us to win. That’s not always the case so we had to make sure we were correct from the first minute, and we were.”
Burton manager Maamria was forced to field his second year scholar Will Tamen, aged just 17, as a centre-half against one of the highest-scoring teams in the league.
Maamria admitted: “It was a difficult afternoon, and we expected that. It’s a tough place to come and they score a lot of goals.
“We knew it would be difficult with our best team but, with our back four all out, and our holding midfielder out, they are our five best players. If you take five of Manchester City’s players out they will suffer.
“A club like ours, we’ve got what we’ve got when you come up against a team like these with half of your team out.
“To pick up points against teams like Peterborough you’ve got to disturb their rhythm and manage the tempo of the game. You’ve got to show controlled aggression as they have good players if you allow them to play.
“This afternoon we didn’t show enough passion to compete in terms of duels, and that’s the biggest disappointment.”
Al-Ahli 1-2 Al-Hilal: Mitrovic double keeps Saudi champions perfect
Aleksandar Mitrovic proved to be the difference once again for Al-Hilal as the reigning Saudi Pro League champions beat Al-Ahli 2-1 on Saturday.
Al-Ahil went in front with 12 minutes played when Gabri Veiga was sent through on goal by Franck Kessie, with the Spaniard rounding Yassine Bounou to open the scoring at King Abdullah Sports City.
The hosts went close to doubling their advantage soon after, with Riyad Mahrez and Ivan Toney going close, before Sergej Milinkovic-Savic saw his effort cleared off the line at the other end.
But parity was restored early in the second half through Al-Hilal's master marksman, as Mitrovic nodded home a trademark header from Renan Lodi's delivery.
Al-Ahil were then awarded a penalty when Rayan Hamed fouled Malcom inside the box, only for Mitrovic to see his effort saved by Abdulrahman Al Sanbi.
However, the Serbian was given the chance to redeem himself after the VAR deemed encroachment had taken place, and he made no mistake at the second time of asking to net his 14th goal of the season in all competitions.
Data Debrief: Mitrovic the main man
Mitrovic has been in fine form since his move to Saudi Arabia, with his latest double taking his tally to 54 goals in as many appearances for Al-Hilal.
This time out, he contributed 1.16 expected goals (xG) tally to the visitors' 2.24 total, while also recording the most touches in the opposition box (six).
Malcom also impressed for Al-Hilal, creating more chances (three) than anyone on the pitch, with his 14 passes into the final third a total only bettered by Ruben Neves (18) and Salem Al Dawsari (15) among his team-mates.
Al-Nassr 3-0 Al-Orubah: Mane double helps hosts close in on leaders
Sadio Mane scored a goal in either half, helping Al-Nassr cruise to a 3-0 win over Al-Orubah and close in on the top two in the Saudi Pro League.
Cristiano Ronaldo had given the hosts the lead from the spot, setting them on their way to a dominant victory.
After a slow start, Jean Seri was penalised for a handball, and Ronaldo made no mistake from the spot. After a stuttering run-up, he coolly slotted his strike into the bottom-left corner.
Mane got his first on the stroke of half-time, latching onto Ronaldo's pull-back before firing his low shot into the far side of the net.
He could have had a hat-trick, having also hit the woodwork and squandered a first-time shot by slicing it wide, but he did get his second in the 71st minute, guiding Nawaf Bu Washi's cross past Gaetan Coucke.
Cristian Tello came closest to a consolation for the visitors, smashing a long-range effort off the crossbar.
Data Debrief: Mane's time to shine
Mane, so far this season, has been providing the spark as a playmaker after registering five assists in Al-Nassr's first five games in the Saudi Pro League.
Today, however, he regained his scoring touch, getting his first two goals of the campaign.
He had the most shots (five), and shots on target (three), as he accumulated 0.97 expected goals (xG), while his seven touches in the box was the most of any player on the field.
Napoli 3-1 Como: Lukaku and McTominay on target to extend hosts' Serie A lead
Romelu Lukaku continued his fine start to life at Napoli as the Belgian notched a goal and two assists in his side's 3-1 win over Como on Friday.
The hosts found themselves ahead with just 26 seconds on the clock when Scott McTominay was picked out by Lukaku, with the Scotland international firing home his first goal for Gli Azzurri off the post.
But Como would draw themselves level two minutes before the break when Gabriel Strefezza's strike from distance rifled into the bottom corner.
However, Antonio Conte's side needed just eight minutes after the interval to restore their advantage when Sergi Roberto brought down Mathias Olivera in the box, with Lukaku stepping up from 12 yards to net his fourth Serie A goal of the season.
Napoli continued to push for a third goal to secure the victory, with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia going closest but saw his effort saved by Emil Audero.
But the points were sealed in the 86th minute when Lukaku turned provider once again, holding off his marker before slipping through substitute David Neres who slotted home with a fine finish to extend Napoli's lead at the top of the standings to four points.
Data Debrief: Lukaku continues Conte love story
Lukaku has been a player reborn under Conte's stewardship. The Belgian is the player who has been involved in the most goals in his first five appearances for Napoli in Serie A since the Italian top-flight returned to 20 teams (since 2004/05) with three goals and four assists.
He has also managed to better his assist tally for the whole of last season, managing just three in 32 appearances for Roma last term.
McTominay's goal after 26 seconds is the third-fastest scored by Napoli since the start of a Serie A match in the three points for a win era, after Hirving Lozano's goal against Hellas Verona in 2021 (nine seconds) and Ezequiel Lavezzi's goal against Genoa in 2008 (25 seconds).
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