Champions League - Group D at Etihad Stadium
Date: 21/10/2015 KO: 19:45 Ref: Att: 45,595
Man City
Adil Rami 36 (og)
Kevin De Bruyne 90+1 |
2
1
| Sevilla
Yevhen Konoplyanka 30
|
FT (HT: 1-1)
|
Kevin de Bruyne's 91st-minute winner gave Manchester City a dramatic Champions League victory over Group D rivals Sevilla.
The Spanish side had taken a deserved lead when Vitolo's cross was turned in by the impressive Yevhen Konoplyanka.
City quickly equalised when Wilfried Bony's close-range shot was deflected home off Adil Rami after good work by Yaya Toure.
Sevilla's quick counter-attacks threatened more goals against a City side that were often caught wide open at the back.
But, for the second successive European game, Manuel Pellegrini's men snatched three vital points in the dying seconds.
Yaya Toure charged forward in stoppage time and fed De Bruyne, who cut in from the right to score his fifth goal in his last seven games for City and send them into second place in the group.
Pellegrini's side are a point behind leaders Juventus, who were held by Borussia Monchengladbach on Wednesday, and three points above Sevilla.
Two of City's last three group games are away, starting with the return at Sevilla in two week's time.
Before then they travel across town to take on Manchester United in Sunday's derby, where Pellegrini will be looking for a big improvement in his defence.
Defensive uncertainty
City had won their previous two home games 6-1 and 5-1, but not without looking wide open at the back at times in both matches, and that vulnerability continued here.
The difference was that City were playing Sevilla, not Newcastle or Bournemouth, and last season's Europa League winners consistently threatened whenever they came forward.
The continuing absence of captain Vincent Kompany - who was again on the bench for his club despite being considered fit enough to start for Belgium at the start of the month - is an obvious factor.
City have not kept a clean sheet without him in their last seven games this season, and Eliaquim Mangala and Nicolas Otamendi - with a combined cost of more than £70m - again failed to convince with their marking, positional sense or tackling ability.
It was City's full-backs who struggled the most, however, with Pablo Zabaleta and Bacary Sagna, who started out of position at left-back, particularly exposed.
Some of that was down to City's 4-4-2 formation, which saw De Bruyne and Jesus Navas tearing up the wings.
That just made it more puzzling why Zabaleta and Sagna looked to join them so often, leaving gaping holes behind them that Sevilla exploited.
Pundit analysis:
BBC Radio 5 live's Pat Nevin: "This is a brilliant result against a really good side. Manchester City got very, very lucky until about 60 minutes but after that I could see tiredness coming for Sevilla. Manuel Pellegrini made some changes, and they were very intelligent changes. They worked, Manchester City won and they are 100% in the driving seat for getting through now."
More to follow.
LINEUP, BOOKINGS (3) & SUBSTITUTIONS (6)
Manchester City
- 01 Hart
- 05 Zabaleta (Kolarov - 60' )
- 30 Otamendi
- 20 Mangala
- 03 Sagna
- 15 Jesús Navas
- 42 Y Touré
- 25 Fernandinho
- 17 De Bruyne (Kompany - 93' )
- 07 Sterling
- 14 Bony Booked (Fernando - 76' )
Substitutes
- 04 Kompany
- 06 Fernando
- 11 Kolarov
- 13 Caballero
- 26 Demichelis
- 62 Barker
- 73 Glendon
Sevilla
- 01 Rico González
- 23 Andújar Moreno (Ferreira Filho - 84' )
- 03 Rami
- 05 Kolodziejczak
- 02 Trémoulinas
- 08 Iborra Booked
- 04 Krychowiak
- 20 Machín Pérez
- 19 Banega (Krohn-Dehli - 66' )
- 22 Konoplyanka (N'Zonzi - 78' )
- 09 Gameiro Booked
Substitutes
- 07 Krohn-Dehli
- 10 Reyes
- 15 N'Zonzi
- 17 Andreolli
- 24 Llorente
- 25 Ferreira Filho
- 31 Soria Solís
Ref: Bas Nijhuis
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário