Aston Villa fell to a bitterly disappointing 2-1 defeat to Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Tuesday night after conceding a potentially costly late winner.
Marcus Rashford drew us level from the penalty spot after Bernardo Silva had given the hosts an early lead, and Villa looked on course to secure a decent point.
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However, City, the better side in the second half as they controlled possession and built sustained pressure, eventually found their breakthrough as Matheus Nunes struck at the back post to seal the three points deep into injury time.
While Villa must firstly bounce back quickly now with our FA Cup semi-final against Crystal Palace next up on Saturday, the challenge for Unai Emery and the players is clear, in that it has to be four wins in four to end the Premier League season to keep our Champions League qualification hopes alive.
Aston Villa player ratings vs Man City:
Emiliano Martinez, 5 – Should have done better for the first goal, as it was a poor attempt to keep the ball out. Crucial moment in the game as the opening goal was always going to be critical, particularly after we had started brightly, but that shifted the momentum.
Matty Cash, 6 – Had a difficult assignment with City causing us real problems down the left with a quick switch of play, but he stuck to his task admirably, albeit he will feel he should have done better to cut out the threat for the opening goal.
Ezri Konsa, 6 – Defended resolutely for the most part as we came under intense pressure, particularly in the second half, but along with the rest of the backline, they were poor in the closing stages as we conceded the winner.
Pau Torres, 6 – Similar story to Konsa in that we were disciplined and resilient defensively for most of the game, and while he couldn’t influence things in possession, the entire defence will be frustrated with the manner of the late winner.
Lucas Digne, 5.5 – City were dangerous in wide areas on both flanks, but as with Cash on the opposite side, Digne worked hard to try and nullify their threat. Lost Nunes at the back post for the winning goal.
Amadou Onana, 7 – Excellent shift from the Villa midfielder, as he imposed himself effectively and used his physicality and agility well to give us a foothold in that area of the pitch. Made some crucial defensive interventions too, including a brilliant clearance in particular to prevent a potential goal.
Boubacar Kamara, 6.5 – Tireless in the midfield battle as he broke up City’s play and regained possession well at times, but wasn’t able to give us control as much as we needed with our opponents building pressure as the game went on.
Morgan Rogers, 5 – His quietest game in some time as he showed glimpses with his strength on the ball and touch, but couldn’t influence our attacking play consistently enough.
Youri Tielemans, 6 – Showed his versatility to feature in two different midfield roles during the game, and although he was key at times in getting us on the ball and creating openings, it was a tough night for him and the rest of the team.
Jacob Ramsey, 6 – Looked sharp early on and won our penalty with a bright bit of play to nip into the box and draw the foul. Influence declined as the game went on and was replaced as we went in search of a winner.
Marcus Rashford, 7 – Was lively from the off as his excellent play ended with his effort hitting the post after just 18 seconds. Top finish with his penalty to draw us level, and although he was a threat thereafter, he couldn’t find a clinical finish to make a bigger impact.
Substitutes:
John McGinn, 5.5 – Showed good strength at times to retain possession, but we probably needed a bit more from the Villa skipper in the latter stages to get us on the front-foot more.
Axel Disasi, 5 – Decisive passage of play at the end as Doku got past him to deliver the cross for the goal. Always looked like a problematic match-up, and it’s not all his fault as he shouldn’t have been brought on at right-back knowing that threat was going obviously going to be an issue for us.
Ollie Watkins, 5.5 – Worked hard off the ball in the latter stages but didn’t really have much service to thrive off.
Marco Asensio, 5 – Quiet after coming on as he didn’t have much of an influence on our play.
Donyell Malen, N/A
