City climbed to second and within two points of leaders Liverpool, who had the weekend off for their winter break. Aston Villa failed to take advantage and move joint top as they were held 0-0 in a bad-tempered clash at Everton.
Honours were also even at Old Trafford as a 2-2 draw with Tottenham did little to aid Manchester United's hopes of a top-four finish.
De Bruyne came off the bench to score and set up Oscar Bobb's stoppage time winner at St. James' Park on his first Premier League appearance for five months after a serious hamstring injury. Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp said "the whole country is starting to shake" as De Bruyne approached a return and City look ominously poised to strike in the title race when they return from a two-week break.
Pep Guardiola's men have now won six consecutive games in all competitions despite missing Erling Haaland for over a month. The Norwegian could also be back by the time City next take the field in the Premier League at the end of the month.
The prospect of De Bruyne and Haaland linking up once more is a scary one for the challengers to City's crown. No side has ever won four consecutive English top-flight titles. But after an understandable dip in standards from winning a treble last season in the first part of the campaign, City are still well-placed to defend their title should they click into gear in the second half of the season.
Tottenham may not have managed to leave Old Trafford with the three points that would have taken them into the top four, but a depleted Spurs still showed the United crowd what they are missing. Twice United led in the first half through fine finishes from Rasmus Hojlund and Marcus Rashford.
Yet, Ange Postecoglou's men were never thrown off course as
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