Jeremy Doku has always backed his own ability – and now the goals are rewarding his belief. The winger scored his fifth goal in six games when he struck the crucial opener in Manchester City’s 3-0 Premier League defeat of Brentford on Saturday.
Coming after vital equalisers in the FA Cup semi-final against Southampton and Monday’s draw at Everton, it also marked the first time in his club career he had scored in three-successive games. The 23-year-old recently spoke about needing to find the net more to elevate himself into the bracket of the world’s elite wingers and – with eight now for the campaign – he is starting to deliver.
Confidence and Consistency
Doku said: “I’ve always been a confident player. Obviously now the goals are there but, in terms of play, I’ve always played like this. Now there are goals added. I’ll just try to find those spaces, try to shoot again and continue like this, have the consistency. I know where I can be, I know where I want to go and it’s just on the line of it. The goals are coming, assists too.”
Doku broke the deadlock after 60 minutes of a hard-fought encounter against the Bees, coming in from the left and curling a shot into the top far corner. The goal was similar to his stoppage-time leveller at Everton and another curled finish against Liverpool earlier in the season.
A Special Weapon
“I felt like I hit it well,” said Doku, who dedicated the goal to his father on his 60th birthday. “Afterwards, to see it in, it was good. You know what it is? It’s grace, grace from above. It’s my special weapon, Jesus. I’ve not been doing anything different. I’ve not been working more, I’ve not been working less, but at this moment, it’s just going in. I’m just grateful and I’ll continue to work hard. I am happy with the victory.”
Doku – whose goal was followed by further strikes from Erling Haaland and Omar Marmoush – is enjoying his best season since joining City three years ago. He has been on the wrong end of some crude challenges as defenders have tried to halt him, but he is not deterred.
Staying Resilient
He said: “It’s fine as long as the ref whistles. I’m not a diver, so when I fall down and he doesn’t whistle sometimes, it can be frustrating. But I just work hard, try to train hard, more than just at the club. I do personal training, just to be fit at the game and try to be able to reproduce every time those efforts.”
