Manchester City 2 (Rayan Cherki 11′, Antoine Semenyo 44′)
Tottenham 2 (Dominic Solanke 52′, 70′)
Here are the City player ratings as Manchester City drew 2-all with Tottenham at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium today. The result sees City fall six points behind Premier League leaders Arsenal. Once again, City’s second-half performance failed to live up to their first-half display. It is becoming a common theme with Pep Guardiola’s side at the moment.
When the starting lineups were announced, Pep Guardiola had made three changes to the lineup that started City’s win over Galatasaray. Rodri, Marc Guehi and Antoine Semenyo returned to the starting eleven as City picked a strong eleven for today’s pivotal match.
First-half moments and thoughts on Manchester City’s performance.
Manchester City took an early lead in the 11th minute through Rayan Cherki. Bernardo Silva dispossessed Yves Bissouma in midfield, which set up a City counter. Erling Haaland played the ball to Rayan Cherki on his right, who beat Vicario in the Tottenham goal with a clever finish. Cherki’s shot took a small nick off Spurs defender Radu Dragusin to give City an early lead.
🚨🏴 RAYAN CHERKI OPENS THE SCORING FOR MANCHESTER CITY!
Tottenham 0-1 Manchester City.pic.twitter.com/lv0CiihBh9
— Tekkers Foot (@tekkersfoot) February 1, 2026
Manchester City’s press caught the eye across the opening 20 minutes. It led to Rayan Cherki’s goal, and with the way Thomas Frank had set up his team, Pep Guardiola’s side could press Spurs due to their narrow setup. Across the first 20 minutes, City seemed happy to let Spurs have possession to try and force them into a mistake. That changed between minutes 20 and 30 as City began to dominate possession.
Manchester City make it 2-nil as they press Spurs into an error again.
Antoine Semenyo would double Manchester City’s lead in the 44th minute. City once again pressed Tottenham with vigor, and their press pinned Radu Dragusin deep in the corner. Dragusin’s poor, hurried clearance was seized upon by Rodri, who played a simple ball to Bernardo Silva. The Manchester City captain slipped the ball to Semenyo on his left, who beat Vicario with ease with a composed finish to give Pep Guardiola’s side the lead that they deserved.
🚨🏴 ANTOINE SEMENYO DOUBLES THE LEAD FOR MANCHESTER CITY!
Tottenham 0-2 Manchester City.pic.twitter.com/1e9zfLQTjt
— Tekkers Foot (@tekkersfoot) February 1, 2026
Manchester City took a 2-0 lead into halftime. Pep Guardiola’s side thoroughly deserved their lead. They pressed Spurs extremely well when the opportunity arose and were by far the better team throughout the first half. Pep Guardiola’s side barely had to get out of second gear, which spoke to how well City had played and how poor Thomas Frank’s side were. Although it must be said that the fact that Tottenham were missing eleven players due to injury had affected their play. Also, City would have to avoid complacency as they did look to be cruising throughout the first-half.
Tottenham make a bright start to the second-half as they find a way back into the game.
Thomas Frank’s side made a bright start to the second half. Gianluigi Donnarumma made a strong save to deny Destiny Udogie in the 50th minute. Two minutes later, a simple ball over the top of the City defence played in Dominic Solanke. The Tottenham striker made room to shoot with a clever piece of skill to stand up Abdukodir Khusanov. Marc Guehi seemingly got to the ball ahead of Dominic Solanke, and his touch took the ball past Donnarumma to make it 2-1. In the end, the goal was credited to Dominic Solanke. Solanke appeared to foul Guehi in the process of Tottenham scoring. But VAR confirmed the goal, and it was game on after City dominated the first half.
Tottenham equalise as City are punished for a poor second half performance.
Thomas Frank’s side would equalize in the 70th minute. Conor Gallagher won possession from Nico O’Reilly and surged down the right-hand side. Gallagher played in a superb cross that Dominic Solanke turned in with a superb improvised finish that Gianluigi Donnarumma almost kept out. It was a superb finish by Solanke, and Tottenham deserved their equalizer. From a City point of view, their second-half performance had been poor, and they only had themselves to blame for throwing away a two-goal lead.
Manchester City had to find a winner as the game entered second-half stoppage time. Pep Guardiola’s side had come through the storm that was Tottenham’s superb second-half performance. City had dominated possession, and Tijjani Reijnders had put two headers wide. Manchester City needed to find something special if they were to pick up three valuable points.
But Pep Guardiola’s side couldn’t find a winner or a moment of significance to end the match. City had thrown away a two-goal lead with a poor second-half display. Tottenham deserves credit for the fight they showed in the second-half, but City will be kicking themselves for throwing away two points at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. That result sees City fall six points behind Arsenal, and the manner of Manchester City’s second-half performance feels like a major cause for concern.
City player ratings
Gianluigi Donnarumma-8/10: The Italian international made a host of superb saves to keep City in it in the face of relentless Tottenham pressure in the second-half.
Matheus Nunes-6/10: Not his best display either defensively or in possession.
Abdukodir Khusanov-6/10: The Uzbekistan international made several crucial early interventions. He then picked up a yellow card for a rash challenge and his performance dropped off after that. He struggled up against the physical threat provided by Dominic Solanke.
Marc Guehi-6.5/10: Guehi was very good in possession but he couldn’t help contain the threat of Dominic Solanke.
Rayan Ait-Nouri-6/10: Ait-Nouri toiled away but spent the majority of his time on the pitch on the periphery of the match.
Nico O’Reilly-6.5/10: Played well in midfield in the first-half and switched to left-back after Rayan Ait-Nouri was taken off. Didn’t have as much influence on the match playing at left-back.
Rodri-6.5/10: Played superbly well in the first-half but drifted out of the game in the second-half as he got tired. He was taken off in second-half stoppage time as he was on the verge of picking up a second yellow card.
Bernardo Silva-7/10: The City captain worked tirelessly again for the cause. He ran out of legs as the second-half wore on before being substituted.
Rayan Cherki-7.5/10: Scored the opening goal and almost scored one of the goals of the season in the first half. Cherki’s positioning and movement did create openings for his team as he put in another very good performance.
Antoine Semenyo-7.5/10: Grabbed a goal and put in a lively display once again.
Erling Haaland-6/10: Haaland set up Cherki’s goal with a good assist. He also missed a great chance to make it 2-nil. He drifted out of the game in the second-half. His team needed more from him, especially in the second-half.
Substitutes
Nico-6/10: Toiled away in midfield after coming on. Perhaps he should have come on earlier when Tottenham upped the ante.
Tijjani Reijnders-6/10: Was lively after coming off the bench and he missed two headers that could have won City the game.
Phil Foden-N/A: Not on long enough to mark.
Omar Marmoush-N/A: Not on long enough to mark.