Here are the City player ratings as Manchester City picked up an emphatic 4-1 win over Aston Villa at the Etihad Stadium. It was a crucial win as it kept the champions within one point of current Premier League leaders Arsenal following their 2-nil win over Luton Town this evening.
Pep Guardiola elected to rest Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne as he made four changes to the team that drew to Arsenal last weekend. Guardiola’s decision to rest his star duo was understandable given the hectic schedule his team has in front of them this month.
First half
The champions made a strong start to proceedings and took the lead in the 11th minute through Rodri. City’s midfield general fired in Jeremy Doku’s cut back to fire his team into the lead. Given Manchester City’s dominant start, it appeared that the champions may dominate proceedings at the Etihad.
But Aston Villa showed why they sit fourth in the Premier League and found an equaliser in the 20th minute. A quick counter saw a neat one-two between John Duran and Morgan Rogers play Duran in, and his cool finish levelled the game at 1-all.
Following Villa’s equaliser, Manchester City pressed forward, looking to regain the lead with Unai Emery’s side looking to hit City on the break.
The treble winners retook the lead in the 46th minute as a well struck Phil Foden free kick found its way through the Aston Villa wall to restore City’s lead. Manchester City would take a precious 2-1 lead into the interval.
Second half
Pep Guardiola’s side began the second half dominating possession as they looked to kill off the game. The European champions did receive a wake-up call in the 55th minute as a swift counter saw Stefan Ortega make a stunning save from Douglas Luiz. Ortega repeated his heroics from the resulting corner as he made another brilliant save from a Clement Lenglet header.
Phil Foden effectively ended the contest in the 62nd minute. City’s boy wonder expertly finished with a shot on the edge of the box after a surging run and assist from Rodri.
There was one more highlight to come from the England international with Foden completing his hat-trick with a stunning strike in the 69th minute. After losing possession, Foden won back possession and fired a rocket into the top corner to seal all three points for Manchester City.
The final twenty minutes gave Pep Guardiola the opportunity to rest key players for what lies ahead as his team picked up a crucial victory to maintain their title challenge.
Here are the City player ratings from an emphatic and crucial 4-1 win for the world champions.
City player ratings
Stefan Ortega-8/10: Made several stunning saves in another quality performance from Ortega. He is too good to be a backup keeper.
Rico Lewis-8/10: A superb performance from the youngster. Other players will get the headlines, but Lewis was outstanding.
Ruben Dias-6/10: Not as dominant best at the back. Made a few errors, but they didn’t prove to be costly.
Manuel Akanji-6/10: A similar performance to that of Ruben Dias. Not at his best, but City picked up the three points. That’s all that matters.
Josko Gvardiol-7.5/10: Gvardiol was City’s best defender on the night. Another polished performance from the Croatian.
Rodri-10/10: Phil Foden will get the headlines, but Rodri’s contribution was equally as important. Scored City’s first and provided Foden’s second in another dominant display.
Bernardo Silva-7/10: Committed several frustrating fouls but was a key component in City’s win. Not
Phil Foden-10/10: Another match winning display from City’s boy wonder. A stunning hat trick when his team needed it the most. Words don’t do justice to just how brilliant Foden’s performance was.
Jeremy Doku-7.5/10: A much better display from the dynamic winger. Picked up an assist and looked lively throughout. Seems better suited to the right wing rather than the left.
Jack Grealish-7.5/10: The England international looked closer to his best against his former team. It was a welcome sight for Manchester City with what lies ahead.
Julian Alvarez-6/10: The Argentinian toiled away but didn’t have his finishing boots on. He appears to need a goal to regain his confidence.
Substitutes
Mateo Kovacic- 6/10: Came on with the game won to give Rodri a rest.
Matheus Nunes-6/10: Made one surging run but sent his shot over the bar. It was good to see Nunes get some minutes as he may have a role to play on the run home.
Oscar Bobb-N/A: Not on long enough to mark.
Sergio Gomez-N/A: Not on long enough to mark.
