Man City player ratings vs Salford: One 10/10 but £31m star flops in 8-0 demolition job | Football | SportManchester City cruised into the FA Cup fourth round with an emphatic 8-0 demolition job of Salford City in what proved to be a grudge (mis)match at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday. Pep Guardiola's side produced a professional display to warm up the sub-zero stadium and humble the League Two promotion-chasers. Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt were the Class of '92 representatives on enemy grounds, but there was no sign of Gary Neville. Ryan Giggs, also a co-owner, continued his unique assistant coach role on the bench. Jeremy Doku, Divin Mubama, Nico O'Reilly, Jack Grealish and James McAtee scored the goals to guide City to a third consecutive win in all competitions. Unsurprisingly wasn't tested. Jahmai Simpson-Pusey - 7 Enjoyed his return to Guardiola's starting line-up. Produced an accurate long ball in the build-up to Doku's opener and almost doubled the lead, only to be denied on the goalline. Nathan Ake - 6 Didn't look at full fitness in a comfortable outing for City's back three and was replaced by Manuel Akanji at half-time. Nico O'Reilly - 8 Dream evening's work. Showcased pace, power and confidence on the ball and topped it offer with his first professional goal. Matheus Nunes - 7 Continued to look better out wide than he has in midfield since joining City. Provided the assist for Mubama's tap-in. James McAtee - 9 Hat-trick hero. Could easily be a 10, in fairness, but wasn't as involved in the first half. Guardiola needs to use him more in the second half of the season and surely acknowledges his continued snubs as a mistake. Rarely looks out of place in this City team. Took his first goal very well. Ilkay Gundogan - 7 Has not had a good time of things since returning to Manchester but had a comfortable night. Jack Grealish - 8 Creative display. Hadn't scored a goal since December 16, 2023, before adding a fourth from the penalty spot. He was never giving the ball to the "young lad" like Danny Murphy suggested on BBC's commentary. Savinho - 5 Fired a few shots off but the £31million summer signing looked far inferior to his wing counterpart, Doku. Jeremy Doku - 10 Two goals, two assists, most chances created, most dribbles completed and a 100 per cent pass accuracy. Player of the Match. It's easy to focus on the opposition, but this was a perfect display. Salford couldn't contain his pace and power with the ball on his feet, and he displayed relentless creativity that has often been scarce since his arrival. Divin Mubama - 7 A rewarding first City start for the 20-year-old. It was impossible to miss the open goal gifted to him by Nunes. SubstitutesManuel Akanji - 6 One of the most comfortable 45 minutes of football he'll ever have. Phil Foden - 7 Played 35 minutes, created two chances and notched an assist. Mateo Kovacic - 6 Standard procedure. Source link Posted: 2025-01-11 21:22:35 |
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