City Dominate Brighton: Players Rated

Manchester City will go into next weekends six pointer ahead of their opposition after this past victory against Brighton. The three points gained at the Etihad now put them level on all stats with Liverpool who have a poorer goal difference.

It was a comprehensive win for the Blues, as you might expect. However it did take a piece of solo running from Sergio Aguero to make the result safe in the 65th minute. So, how did I rate the players?

Predicted Lineup To Face Fulham

The Premier League restarts on Saturday with Manchester City looking to close the gap on the three teams above. Heading into the International break in fourth position, the undefeated statistic was sidelined for the struggling performances.

A draw away to Wolves, at least on the home sides performance, might not be such a bad result in the long run. More concerns for me actually came against Newcastle when, at home, we took the lead but failed to close the game out. Yes we got the result, but it was so much more difficult than it had to be and, unlike Wolves, I don't think it was much to do with a tough opposition!

Predicted Lineup For Newcastle

The late game on Saturday will see Manchester City with an opportunity to put their Premier League trophy defense back on track. Last weekend was a slight disappointment for the Blues fans, although Wolves really played their part.

I had stated earlier that you could point to a couple of incidents which didn't go our way, but essentially Wolves played very well, and should be a test for other sides this season.

Manchester City Molineux Player Rating

It was always going to be a tough game for the Blues. Wolverhampton Wanderers, at their own ground, had nothing to lose. But there was more to their game than that, and it would be disingenuous to say that Manchester City were poor. 

Although City were far from their free flowing best, it was down to the way Wolves played which thwarted a lot of Pep Guardiola’s plans. Yes you could point to the handball goal which was allowed to stand and the penalty which wasn’t given, but these were all decisions which were, in real-time and without VAR, not easily spotted. So how did the players rate?

Blues Top Table After SIX-sational Performance

Manchester City moved to their rightful place, atop the Premier League table, with a 6-1 victory over Huddersfield. I think the Terriers will find it much more difficult this season from last and were my pre-season tip to be relegated. 

That said, you can only beat whats put out in front of you. Focusing on Manchester City's performance only, you cannot be anything other than excited. So, having focused on player ratings last time (link found toward the bottom of the page) now its time for what was learnt.

Classy City Sweep Aside Terriers - Players Rated

Manchester City made it two for two at the weekend with a sublime performance against Huddersfield Town on Sunday. On a day which saw players from the 1987, 10-1 demolition invited back to City, Peps boys put on a celebratory display.

In a later article I will look at the different talking points from the game. For now though, lets get down to the player ratings. There were a number of fine performances, and even an appearance from young Phil Foden, something I had suggested might happen in my preview a few days ago.

Opening Day: City's Sterling Performance

The defending Champions, Manchester City, came through a tricky game. Opening day fixtures are somewhat unpredictable. Add a new regime at the Emirates to the fact many players have only just returned from the World Cup, any anything can happen.

In the end, Manchester City ran out comfortable winners, with a sublime performance. That said, there were still parts of the game which had Pep visibly frustrated.

City Do It The Hard Way As Hero Sterling Sees Red.

Manchester City traveled back to the south coast as they tried to get their Premiership campaign back on a winning track. Despite an early scare, when the hosts went ahead, City came through.....eventually.

Pep surprised a few people with his line up, when he went for a back four. Benjamin Mendy made his City debut while Bernardo Silva made his first start for the Blues. Starting up front, on his own, was Gabriel Jesus as Aguero found himself benched. In my preview to this game I had suggested that Pep might try this formation, considering the percentage of possession City usually enjoy combined with Bournemouth's possession stats so far this season.

What Did We Learn From The Visit Of Everton?

Like many Manchester City fans, I finished watching Monday nights game with mixed emotions.

For sure the talking points since that game have revolved around whether Kyle Walker and Morgan Schneiderlin should have seen red. Second talking point concerned whether Kun Aguero and Domenic Calvert-Lewin should have faced retrospective action for simulation.