Manchester City cruised to an emphatic 4-0 win over Slovan Bratislava on Tuesday evening.
In a game that was rarely a real contest, City took an early lead thanks to goals from Ilkay Gundogan and Phil Foden, and the Premier League leaders never looked back.
Erling Haaland scored his must-win goal shortly after the restart, before youngster James McAtee struck to seal the three points.
How the game developed
Slovan Bratislava almost produced a shock start to the match when Tigran Barseghyan found some space on the counter and sent a blistering effort narrowly wide of Stefan Ortega’s goal inside the opening two minutes.
However, City soon took control and took the lead through Gundogan, whose volley from the edge of the penalty area took a poor deflection and left goalkeeper Dominik Takac with no chance.
In the 15th minute, City doubled their lead through Foden. The England international found an inch of space in the box and curled a perfect effort into the bottom corner.
Jeremy Doku crashed over in the corner as City looked for a third, and Gundogan followed suit from the edge of the box when his powerful effort crashed against the crossbar seven minutes before the break.
Haaland cut a frustrated figure when he headed home what was his eighth touch of the ball wide shortly after the restart. He made up for it almost immediately though, rounding the keeper and tapping into the empty net.
With 16 minutes to go, James McAtee slotted home a fourth from close range, culminating in a good win for Pep Guardiola’s side.
GK: Stefan Ortega – 6/10 – Largely a spectator in an incredibly comfortable performance.
RB: Rico Lewis – 7/10 – He had so many opportunities to get involved later on and he happily took every opportunity. Some smart passing in midfield.
CB: Manuel Akanji – 6/10 – A handful of nervous moments at first. I didn’t make a lot of mistakes, but sometimes I didn’t have the necessary composure.
CB: John Stones – 7/10 – An excellent creator from deep, Stones was heavily involved in most of City’s build-up.
LB: Josko Guardiol – 7/10 – I have been involved in the attack time and time again. Bright signs of a real understanding with Savinho.
DM: Ilkay Gundogan – 8/10 – He scored the first goal and could have had another from range in a quietly clinical performance.
DM: Matheus Nunes – 5/10 – On a night where City looked a class or two above their opponents, Nunes certainly did not stand out. His playing was often slow and uninspired.
RM: Jeremy Doku – 8/10 – A massive threat all night long. He picked up a deserved assist and should have had at least one or two goals of his own.
AM: Phil Foden – 8/10 – He showed real class with his goal. He walked around with real excitement and seemed to be enjoying himself.
LM: Savinho – 7/10 – Some nice moments that wreaked havoc on Slovan Bratislava’s defence, but they certainly played a reserved role compared to Doku and Foden.
ST: Erling Haaland – 7/10 – Slovan Bratislava defended so deep that Haaland would simply never have the space to get involved here. He was on the sidelines for most of the game before a moment of quality saw him get his goal.
Substitutes
SUB: James McAtee (61′ for Haaland) – 7/10
SUB: Ruben Dias (61′ for Akanji) – 6/10
SUB: Jack Grealish (78′ for Foden) – 6/10
SUB: Kyle Walker (78′ for Guardiol) – 6/10
Subs not used: Ederson (GK), Scott Carson (GK), Mateo Kovacic, Bernardo Silva
manager
Pep Guardiola – 7/10 – It was surprisingly strong for this lineup, considering their public requests for more opportunities to rest their stars, but there can be no complaints with the result.
