Manchester City player ratings: Joao Cancelo fuels Champions League attack in club’s 19th consecutive win
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Manchester City have one foot in the UEFA Champions League quarterfinals after a 2-0 round of 16 first leg win over Borussia Monchengladbach at Puskas Arena in Budapest, Hungary, on Wednesday. Bernardo Silva scored the opening goal of the game with a rare header from a pinpoint Joao Cancelo cross on 29 minutes and the same combination teed Gabriel Jesus up for the second after 65 minutes.
Marco Rose’s “home” side were well-organized, but lacked the quality going forward to hurt the Premier League leaders and they rolled on with another win — their 19th in a row across all competitions. Pep Guardiola’s men now look well set to reach the final eight with the hardest part of this tie out of the way and Monchengladbach looking unlikely to recover.
Here are the City player ratings.
GK — Ederson: Untested by a Gladbach attack that only managed one solitary shot on target, it was a largely quiet evening between the sticks. Rating: 6
DEF — Kyle Walker: Saw more of the ball going forward that at the back due to City’s dominance but it was on the left where Guardiola’s side did the damage. Rating: 6
DEF — Ruben Dias: Solid enough alongside Laporte but relatively unfussed as Monchengladbach failed to create much going forward over the 90 minutes. Rating: 7
DEF — Aymeric Laporte: Paired well with Dias but it was not like either were put under too much pressure by a German attack that just did not have the tools to test them. Rating: 7
DEF — Joao Cancelo: He assisted Silva’s opener with a pinpoint cross before his ball in was headed across goal by Silva for Jesus to score the second on a productive night on the left side. Rating: 8
MID — Ilkay Gundogan: Unspectacular compared to his recent showings but accomplished enough to ensure that City were always in control in the middle. Rating: 6
MID — Rodri: Energetic in the midfield alongside Gundogan but was rarely asked to go up though the gears as Silva and Cancelo made the difference further up the pitch. Rating: 6
MID — Phil Foden: Was given 80 minutes and exhibited some neat touches but left the bulk of the creating to Cancelo and Silva. Rating: 6
FWD — Raheem Sterling: The skipper lasted 69 minutes before Mahrez replaced him and was the lesser of the three attacking talents on the night as Silva and Jesus both scored. Rating: 6
FWD — Gabriel Jesus: Got his goal after 65 minutes through predatory instinct and was then withdrawn in order to give Aguero his chance to launch his latest injury comeback. Rating: 7
FWD — Bernardo Silva: Headed in the first-half opener from Cancelo’s ball in and then provided number two midway through the second half in similar fashion. Rating: 8
SUB — Riyad Mahrez: Replaced Sterling with just over 20 minutes to play. Rating: N/A
SUB — Ferran Torres: Came on in Foden’s place for the final 10 minutes. Rating: N/A
SUB — Sergio Aguero: Made his first appearance since early January when he replaced Jesus for the final nine minutes. Rating: N/A
MANAGER — Pep Guardiola: He probably experienced more resistance than he expected at first, but it ultimately made no difference as City’s quality told and their defensive solidity stood out. Rating: 7