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Bernardo was denied by Martínez in the fourth minute: he finally broke the deadlock with City’s 25th goal attempt
Late goals from Bernardo Silva and Ilkay Gundogan ended Aston Villa’s resistance as Manchester City moved to the top of the Premier League for the first time this season, at least for a few hours, with a hard-won victory.
Pep Guardiola’s team will be knocked out of the summit later on Wednesday if Manchester United beat Fulham, but the determination they showed to claim their sixth consecutive league win underscored that they are here to stay in this title race.
Villa’s first team, which played its first game since New Year’s Day due to a coronavirus outbreak at the club, showed no aftermath from their 19-day hiatus and produced a tenacious defensive display.
They held on until the 79th minute, when Rodri controversially stole the ball from Tyrone Mings and fed Bernardo, who shot brilliantly into the top corner from the edge of the area.
Rodri was offside before returning to an offside position to challenge Mings and Villa’s manager, Dean Smith, was sent off for his protests.
It meant he wasn’t there to watch Gundogan secure points from the spot shortly after Matty Cash handled a header from Gabriel Jesus, in what was a much easier decision for referee Jon Moss.
The city’s perseverance pays off
For long stretches on a miserable night at the Etihad Stadium, it seemed that City’s advance would never come.
Things could have been easier for City if Bernardo had converted from close range when a corner got in his way after four minutes, but instead Emiliano Martínez made a valiant save at his feet and set the tone for a Villa performance. fight.
City had 24 goal attempts before Bernardo finally broke the deadlock, but 12 of them were blocked and the closest they had come to a breakthrough was when Joao Cancelo’s shot in the second half bounced off the bar.
Villa took advantage of his luck, especially when Martinez denied John Stones from a corner and the ball somehow evaded Gundogan when it seemed certain he would go ahead and score, but they also had opportunities of their own.
Bertrand Traore was about to take advantage of a slip by Kevin de Bruyne, but his curling effort was well saved by Ederson, who also had to start an effort from Douglas Luiz to secure his team’s fifth consecutive clean sheet.
Vibrant villa back in action
Villa is leaving Manchester empty-handed, just as he did in his previous Premier League match against United on 1 January, but he deserves great credit for his performance here.
They had seen their last two league games postponed, against Everton and Tottenham, but this was a reminder of the way they were playing before the season was interrupted.
Smith was the manager of the month for December after his team remained undefeated in five games and finished the year in fifth place.
They’ve retired from the top half while out of action, but with this evidence, that’s a false position – the defensive improvement that has been the hallmark of their season was shown again here, as was their spirit.
Whats Next?
Travel to town to play League Two Cheltenham in the FA Cup on Saturday (17:30 GMT) and the game will be broadcast live on BBC One. They return to Premier League action on Tuesday with a trip to West Brom (20:15).
Villa is out of the FA Cup, but plays his reorganized Premier League match with Newcastle, postponed to late November due to Covid-19 cases at Magpies camp, on Saturday (20:00) when they start work on your match schedule. .
More follows.
Reaction of Man City v Aston Villa, in addition to following Fulham v Man Utd
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Man of the match
Martinez Emiliano Martinez
with an average of 7.40
- Man CityManchester CityManchester CityAston VillaAston VillaAston Villa
Manchester CityAvgTeam Number47Player NameFodenAverage Score
7.09
Squad number 8 Player name Gündogan Average rating
6.95
Squad number 20 Player name Bernardo Silva Average score
6.90
Squad number 3 Player name Rúben Dias Average rating
6.89
Squad number 27 Player name João Cancelo Average score
6.73
Squad number 17 Player name De Bruyne Average rating
6.71
Squad number 5 Player name Stones Average rating
6.57
Squad number 31 Player name Ederson Average rating
6.54
Squad Number 16 Player Name Rodri Average Rating
6.36
Squad number 11 Player name Zinchenko Average rating
6.16
Squad number 9 Player name Gabriel Jesus Average rating
5.74
Squad Number 26 Player Name Mahrez Average Rating
5.69
Squad Number 7 Player Name Sterling Average Rating
5.55
Squad number 2 Player name Walker Average rating
5.48
Aston VillaAvgTeam Number26Player NameMartinezAverage Score
7.40
Squad Number 10 Player Name Grealish Average Rating
7.18
Squad number 18 Player name Goal Average
7.17
Squad number 6 Player name Douglas Luiz Average rating
6.88
Squad Number 4 Player Name Konsa Average Rating
6.76
Squad number 2 Player name Cash Average rating
6.61
Squad number 5 Player name Mings Average rating
6.45
Squad Number 7 Player Name McGinn Average Rating
6.41
Squad number 15 Player name Traoré Average rating
6.40
Squad Number 11 Player Name Watkins Average Rating
6.30
Squad number 20 Player name Barkley Average rating
6.13
Squad Number 41 Player Name Ramsey Average Rating
5.74
Squad Number 3 Player Name Taylor Average Rating
5.72
Squad number 21 Player name El Ghazi Average rating
5.70
- Lineups Match Statistics Live Text
LineupsMan City
Formation 4-3-3
31Ederson2Walker5Stones3Rúben Dias27Cancelo17De Bruyne16Rodri8Gündogan7Sterling20Bernardo Silva47Foden
- 31Ederson2WalkerReplaced by Zinchenkoat 28’minutes5Piedras3Rúben Days27Cancel17De BruyneReplaced byGabriel Jesusat 59’minutes16Rodri8Gündogan7SterlingReplaced byMahrezat 72’minutes20Bernardo Silva47Foden
Substitutes
- 9Gabriel Jesus11Zinchenko13Steffen21Torres22Mendy25Fernandinho26Mahrez50García82Bernabé
Aston Villa
4-2-3-1 formation
26Martínez2Cash4Konsa5Mings18Targett6Douglas Luiz7McGinn15Traoré20Barkley10Grealish11Watkins
- 26Martínez2Cash4Konsa5Mings18Targett Replaced by Taylorat 75’minutesReserved at 86 minutes6Douglas Luiz 7McGinnReserved at 67 minutes15TraoréReplaced by El Ghaziat 68’minutes20BarkleyReplaced by Ramsey in 68’minutes10Grealish11Watkins
Substitutes
- 1Heaton3Taylor19Nakamba21El Ghazi22Engels24Guilbert27El Mohamady39Davis41Ramsey
Referee: Jonathan MossMatch StatsHome TeamMan CityAway TeamAston VillaPossessionHome69% Away31% ShotsHome28Away11Thots to targetHome9Away4CornersHome16Away2FoulsHome10Away9Live TextPost update
End of the match, Manchester City 2, Aston Villa 0.
90 ‘+ 5’ Full time
Second half ends, Manchester City 2, Aston Villa 0.
90 ‘+ 3’Post update
John Stones (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
90 ‘+ 3’Post update
Foul by Jack Grealish (Aston Villa).
90 ‘+ 2’Post update
Foul by Rodrigo (Manchester City).
90 ‘+ 2’Post update
Douglas Luiz (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
90’Post update
Objective! Manchester City 2, Aston Villa 0. Ilkay Gündogan (Manchester City) converted the penalty with his right into the center of the goal.
89’Post update
Penalty by Matthew Cash (Aston Villa) with one hand in the area.
89’Post update
Failed attempt. Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City) header at point blank range from the left side misses the ball from the right side of the goal. Assisted by Riyad Mahrez with a cross.
88’Post update
Corner, Manchester City. Conceded by Emiliano Martínez.
88’Post update
Shot stopped brushing the left square. João Cancelo (Manchester City) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top left corner. Assisted by Bernardo Silva.
86 ‘Reserve
Neil Taylor (Aston Villa) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
86’Post update
Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
86’Post update
Foul by Neil Taylor (Aston Villa).
82’Post update
Foul by Bernardo Silva (Manchester City).
82’Post update
Jack Grealish (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
79’OlGoal!
Objective! Manchester City 1, Aston Villa 0. Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) left footed shot from outside the box to the top left corner. Assisted by Rodrigo.
78’Post update
Foul by Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City).
78’Post update
Douglas Luiz (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
77’Post update
Corner, Manchester City. Corner committed by Matthew Cash.
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Source: bbc.com
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