Manchester City 5 - 1 Crystal Palace: 5 Talking Points

Manchester City continued their formidable run of home form with a 5-1 win against Crystal Palace in the fourth round of the Capital One Cup on Wednesday night. 

Wilfried Bony, Kevin De Bruyne, Kelechi Iheanacho, Yaya Touré and Manu García claimed the goals in a display characterised by youthful energy and intricate one-touch passing. City have now scored 25 goals in their eight home games in all competitions this season, an average of 3.1 goals a game, and advance confidently into the quarter-finals with another home tie against Championship outfit Hull City awaiting them.

After witnessing Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Leicester City crash out of the competition this week, the Blues will be hopeful of adding silverware to their trophy cabinet in March. 

Kelechi stakes his claim for a lead role.

(Kelechi Iheanacho and Kevin De Bruyne celebrate City's third of the night - image via @Squawka)

It was always going to be Kelechi Iheanacho's night. 

With his face on the front cover of the matchday programme and a chorus of City supporters demanding that he be included in the starting eleven, the 19-year-old was under pressure to perform after impressing in various cameos across the season. But with a cool combination of confidence and composure well beyond his years, Iheanacho delivered the goods; scoring a goal and registering two assists in the 5-1 victory. 

The Nigerian's link up play with Kevin De Bruyne gave the Etihad Stadium an exciting view of the future. The pair connected brilliantly to provide one another with goals - Iheanacho's unselfishness for the Belgian's tap in showcased his maturity in front of goal - and could be given the chance to intertwine again against Norwich City on Saturday. 

Fernando the unsung hero.

(Fernando has looked a different player this term after a disappointing first season at the Etihad Stadium - image via MCFC Official Facebook)

Iheanacho will snatch the headlines, but the best player on the pitch was Fernando. Maligned last season for his sloppiness in possession and clumsiness in the tackle, the former Porto midfielder has reinvented himself as one of City's more assured individuals this term. 

With Yaya Touré operating in a deeper role against Palace, it was Fernando who bombarded forward and joined in with City's attacking play. The Brazilian created two clear cut chances and spawned a number of counter attacks for the Blues on Wednesday night in a dominant midfield performance that will leave Manuel Pellegrini with selection issues ahead of the weekend.

Kevin De Bruyne; the machine.

(De Bruyne netted City's second goal of the night - image via Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Judging by Kevin De Bruyne's start to life in Manchester, it would have been impossible to find a better fit for this City side in the summer transfer window. 

The 24-year-old, signed from Wolfsburg for £54m in August, raised his tally to six goals and five assists in his first nine appearances with a goal and an assist against Palace. Interestingly, the Belgian's enormous fee has been absent in the weekly match reports lauding him for his brilliance on the field; but with a record like that, there's no need to mention it. 

De Bruyne has hit the ground running since landing at Manchester airport two months ago and is already being touted as a future legend by enthusiastic City fans. 

Caballero isn't a man after our own Hart.

(Willy Caballero failed to impress once against on Wednesday evening - image via Tom Dulant/Getty Images)

City's second choice goalkeeper hasn't had many opportunities to stake his claim for a starting spot in Pellegrini's side since signing for the Blues in July 2014, but he has failed to take the few chances he has been given. 

His unsteady display in the 4-1 loss to Tottenham Hotspur in September saw Joe Hart reclaim his place immediately and the Englishman will have no concerns over returning to the eleven this weekend after watching the Argentine fail to impress yet again on Wednesday. 

The 34-year-old failed to deal with a number of crosses throughout the 90 minutes but was spared embarrassment by some questionable finishing. His poor positioning, however, was punished by Damien Delaney who headed in a consolation goal for the visitors in the dying minutes.

Can City win the cup?

(City won the Capital One Cup in 2014, beating Sunderland 3-1 - image via www.standard.co.uk)

After being handed a favourable quarter-final home tie against Hull City, the answer has to be yes. 

Manchester United were the latest Premier League giants to crash out on Wednesday night and join Arsenal, Chelsea and high-flying Leicester City in the graveyard of the competition. Bar an unlikely upset, City will be expected to go on and claim the trophy with the talented squad they have at their disposal.

Manchester City 2 - 1 Sevilla: Thoughts & Ratings

Money can't buy you happiness, but it can buy you Kevin De Bruyne; and for Manchester City fans on Wednesday evening, one stroke of the Belgian's left boot in the final minutes against Sevilla was enough to provide a night of total euphoria. 

It was a case of déjà vu for the Blues as yet another late winner disguised what was a highly problematic display characterised by slovenly defending and an openness in the midfield that begged for punishment. Fortunately for Manuel Pellegrini, his Spanish opponents managed to find the back of the net with only one of their 12 shots on goal. 

This was not quite vintage City in Europe - apprehensive in style and too slow going forward - but it was a City unrecognisable to the force that trounced Bournemouth 5-1 just four days earlier. 

Unai Emery's men spent most of the first half probing unfamiliar opposition before sending Yevhen Konoplyanka and Vitolo on snatch and grab missions down City's flanks. This was the first meeting between the two sides, but it didn't take long for the Spaniards to become aware of City's vulnerability at the back. Thirty minutes in and the pair came away with the goods as Vitolo's cross was turned in by the unmarked Konoplyanka at the back post. 

Pellegrini's decision to leave Vincent Kompany on the bench drew murmurs from anxious supporters before the game. Before his injury, City had not conceded a goal in 525 minutes with the Belgian commanding their back line, but without him, the side had leaked a goal every 56 minutes. Was this punishment for disobeying his manager's orders and playing for Belgium nine days ago, or was Pellegrini truly satisfied with an Otamendi-Mangala partnership?

Whichever line of thinking the Chilean had gone with, it was hurting his side and City's openness required a plug in the form of their captain or an extra midfielder. BT Sport pundit Paul Scholes took the opportunity to once again castigate Yaya Touré for his defensive ineptitude before the game, but the Blues' were struggling because of their manager's tactical mistakes rather than Touré's weaknesses. 

And just six minutes after Sevilla took the lead, Touré called upon his vast repertoire of strengths to wrestle his side back into the game. The Ivorian muscled his way past Timothée Kolodziejczak on the byline and fired into the box where Wilfried Bony's hopeful swing ricocheted off Adil Rami and past Rico. 

And it was Touré again, the man who had revealed his irritation at the lack of recognition he receives from the British media earlier this week, who ensured a memorable evening was to be enjoyed by City fans. With seconds remaining, the 32-year-old bombarded forward on one of his acclaimed runs and fed the ball into Kevin De Bruyne who cut inside and slotted in the winner in the 92nd minute.

Champions League lift-off at last? It's still unclear, but with world class ammunition there is always a chance. 

Fernando on, Bony off
Strangely, this was an offensive move designed to change the angle of attack. By introducing Fernando, Pellegrini was able to push Touré forward and move De Bruyne, the team's biggest threat going forward, into the no.9 role. The move puzzled spectators who questioned the logic of bringing off the side's only striker, but Bony had been ineffective and ultimately, the change paid off. 

Is Bony good enough?
Comparing any striker to Sergio Agüero is often a pointless task, but with the Argentine set to be sidelined for the next month, City must rely on Wilfried Bony as the only experienced striker in their squad. The 26-year-old played his part in the equaliser, but lacked awareness and mobility in the penalty area that Agüero provides so consistently.

On a night where Jesus Navas's delivery into the box was uncharacteristically faultless, Bony failed to present himself as a target and as a result, 15 crosses were left to trickle into nothingness. The former Swansea man certainly has the credentials to lead City's line and showed his worth with two goals against Bournemouth last weekend, but in more important fixtures, the Ivorian is yet to, and must begin to, show his worth. 

Kevin De Bruyne is worth every penny
There is something so complete about City's new Belgian. Whether it's a 30 yard pass into a striker, a cross from the byline or a shot on the goal, the 24-year-old executes the task with composure and precision. 

De Bruyne, who has five goals and four assists to his name in his first seven appearances in all competitions, is already a fan favourite and could be the difference between trophies and runners up medals this season. 

Player Ratings

Joe Hart 6

Pablo Zabaleta 5

Nicolas Otamendi 6

Eliaquim Mangala 7

Bacary Sagna 6

Fernandinho 6

Yaya Touré 7.5

Kevin De Bruyne 8

Jesus Navas 7.5

Raheem Sterling 5

Wilfried Bony 5

Substitutes

Aleksandar Kolarov 6
Fernando 7

Vincent Kompany - no time to mark

Borussia Mönchengladbach 1 - 2 Manchester City: Thoughts & Ratings

Champions League football and Manchester City - the married couple that brawl and bicker profusely. The relationship is a confused one. Everything is in place for a prosperous romance, but the flowers never seem to bloom. Dissension has polluted the five-year affair. 


(Sergio Agüero nets a late winner from the penalty spot - image via Manchester City Official Facebook)

On Wednesday night in a modest German city west of the River Rhine, they kissed and made up. Manchester City came back from a goal down to beat Borussia Mönchengladbach 2-1 at Borussia Park and it was the least Champions League-like thing to happen to Manuel Pellegrini's team ever. 

Things didn't run so smoothly, however. Things rarely do in this competition. Sergio Agüero missed a catalogue of chances as his poor run of form continued and the partnership between Nicolas Otamendi and Martin Demichelis in the centre of City's defence exhibited a number of sizeable cracks. Within the first five minutes Raheem Sterling's terrific cross was met by a not-so-terrific attempt from Agüero who tapped into Yann Sommer's arms from a yard out. Ten minutes later, his Argentinian compatriot Otamendi brought down Raffael in the 18-yard-box and the hosts had a penalty. Joe Hart, City's Man of the Match and serial top performer in the competition, saved expertly. Raffael continued to pepper the Englishman's goal throughout, but Hart made a series of stunning stops to deny the Brazilian and keep his side in the game. The first 45 minutes had travelling fans singing the Argentinian Blues, but with frowns, rather than smiles, on their faces. 

Yaya Touré was hooked at half time and Gladbach's ferocity on the counter attack diminished as a result. With a fully fit squad available to him, Manuel Pellegrini is likely to go with a four-man attacking unit made up of Agüero, Sterling, De Bruyne and Silva as he did on Wednesday evening. However, playing the attacking-minded Touré behind that quartet hands Fernandinho the job of two men sweeping up in front of the defence. In the Premier League, that tactic may pay off on occasion, but in Europe it very rarely does. Fernando's impact in the second half may provide a wake up call to the Chilean.

(Yaya Touré passed a late fitness test ahead of City's tie against Borussia Mönchengladbach, but was not 100% according to his manager - image via Getty Images)

Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes voiced his concerns over Touré in the build up to the match. "He is one of the best midfielders going forward but he switches off defensively," the BT Sport pundit said. Scholes was correct. 

In the aftermath of the victory, Pellegrini admitted that he had doubts over the Ivorian's fitness ahead of the clash. “Yaya was not 100 per cent from the beginning,” he said, which begs the question: "Why did he start?"

Touré's lack of defensive work was not solely to blame for the threat Lucien Favre's men carried on the counter, though. Otamendi and Demichelis were having poor games and allowed Lars Stindl to go unchallenged as he slotted in the opening goal of the game ten minutes into the second half. The pair had struggled in City's 4-1 loss to Tottenham Hotspur at the weekend and the absence of Vincent Kompany and Eliaquim Mangala, who had formed such a commanding alliance in City's first five Premier League games, was beginning to ache a little more. 

This was pure Manchester City in the Champions League. Hopeless.

But there was a fight about the side in the last half an hour of the game. Otamendi redeemed himself with a volley that cannoned in off Andreas Christensen with 25 minutes left on the clock after Sommer clawed Demichelis's effort from De Bruyne's corner out of his goal. Replays showed that Demichelis had actually put the ball into the net and the fifth official was fortunate that his incompetence went unnoticed. 

(Nicolas Otamendi is congratulated by Raheem Sterling after netting City's equaliser - image via Manchester City Official Facebook)

There was fire in the belly of Pellegrini's side. They knew they had to win after a disappointing week and that any chance of qualification would rest heavily on this result. Agüero, fuelled by his desperation for a goalscoring fix, continued to assault Sommer's net, but to no avail. The Argentine's movement was typically excellent, his ability to spin defenders still there, but his finishing way off. The 19 shots City failed to hit the target with go some way to describing the 27-year-old's fortunes in front of goal. 

Agüero's persistence did pay off, though, and City were awarded a penalty in the final minute of the game. As they say, form is temporary, class is permanent, and the striker's poise was there to be seen by all as he rolled in the winner and sent the Blues into second position in Group D behind leaders Juventus. 

Agüero's stats

Shots: 8

Shots on target: 5

Goals: 1

Chances created: 2

Take ons: 4

Relief and elation made a rare appearance on the faces of City's stars. Their fighting spirit had been rewarded.

Player Ratings

Joe Hart 9

Bacary Sagna 7

Nicolas Otamendi 6

Martin Demichelis 6

Aleksandar Kolarov 5.5

Fernandinho 7

Yaya Touré 5

Kevin De Bruyne 6

David Silva 6.5

Raheem Sterling 6

Sergio Agüero 6

Substitutes

Fernando 7
Jesus Navas 7

Pablo Zabaleta - no time to mark