Manchester City picked up another Champions League win to maintain their unbeaten start to the campaign. Pep Guardiola's side overcame Borussia Dortmund, convincingly beating the German outfit 4-1 at the Etihad Stadium.
City were at their clinical best against Dortmund, bagging two goals in each half. Phil Foden, operating in the right half-space, opened the scoring. He fired his effort home from outside the penalty area on his left foot.
Erling Haaland was next to get on the scoresheet, just before the half-hour mark. The City number nine, who was their captain on the night, scored his 27th goal of the season for club and country. It was an easy goal for someone as dangerous as Haaland, who pulled away into acres of space and fired home.
Haaland
After the halftime break, Foden scored his second of the night. It was a carbon copy of his first goal, too.
Once again, the England international picked the ball up in the right half-space and bent his strike into the bottom left corner.
Dortmund did pull one back to give them a fighting chance, but Rayan Cherki added a fourth to cap off a good night’s work. Indeed, the Frenchman must be in contention for a start in City’s next game.
Changes Guardiola could make after Dortmund
It was certainly a good performance from the Citizens, with their two standout players, Haaland and Foden, really putting their Bundesliga opposition to the sword.
They are players who have surely locked down their starting spot, although Guardiola could tinker with his lineup based on Wednesday night.
Haaland Foden
Indeed, Cherki is one of the players who could slot into the side.
He had a superb impact off the bench, scoring a well-taken goal which saw him carry the ball 30 yards or so, into the Dortmund penalty area and unleash his shot past Gregor Kobel.
In his ten-minute cameo, the former Olympique Lyon attacker completed one out of one dribble and won two ground duels. It was a busy night, continuing his good form and surely putting himself in contention to start City’s next game against Liverpool.
Nico Gonzalez also impressed in midfield, and with Rodri still not fully fit, there is a case to suggest he is City’s first-choice number six. Simon Bajkowski, City writer for the Manchester Evening News, gave the Spaniard a 7/10 for his efforts against Dortmund.
Nico Gonzalez-1
There is one player against Dortmund who disappointed, and it will be interesting to see if Guardiola keeps him in the lineup.
The Man City player who struggled vs. Dortmund
It is certainly hard to pick holes in a 4-1 home win in the Champions League. However, there were a few moments against the Bundesliga giants where City struggled to keep a firm grip on the game, particularly towards the end when they conceded.
Indeed, one of the players who struggled more than others was right-back Matheus Nunes. The Portuguese international, who is a midfielder by trade, had a couple of lapses in concentration which could have cost his side late on.
Matheus Nunes
One of those came in the 80th minute, when a sliced pass from Josko Gvardiol went right across the City backline. The right-back was caught napping, and Carney Chukwuemeka pounced on the loose ball.
Luckily for Nunes and City, Gianluigi Donnarumma got there first.
Despite the good performance from his side, it was a disappointing showing from the former Wolves man. Nunes lost the ball 11 times and only managed to win one out of his five attempted duels.
Nunes key stats vs. Dortmund
Stat
Touches
Pass accuracy
Possession lost
Recoveries
Clearances
Ground duels won
Aeiral duels won
Stats from Sofascore
It was certainly a frustrating night’s work from Nunes. Bajkowski gave him a 6/10 and criticised his defensive awareness, explaining that 'he abandoned his post too often'. It was a performance that left a lot to be desired.
With a huge game against Liverpool next up, it will be interesting to see if Guardiola keeps Nunes in the side, or chooses to rotate him out of the lineup. Of course, he will be coming up against Cody Gakpo, who has been Arne Slot’s first-choice left winger this season.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola and Matheus Nunes react
The Dutchman is in excellent form, with five goals and assists in ten Premier League games. Nunes certainly can’t afford to switch off like he did against Dortmund, because City will be punished.
It is a big call for Guardiola, who has the likes of Rico Lewis and Abdukodir Khusanov as options at right-back waiting in the wings. The City boss might well decide to rotate Nunes in the crunch clash this weekend.