Everton 0–2 Manchester City Player Ratings: City’s Resilience Helps Them Rise from the Ruins Earning Them the Crucial Three Points Away from Home
Everton face off against the defending Champions, Manchester City, at Goodison Park, which they proudly call the ‘Grand Old Lady’, for the 33rd match week of the Premier League.
Both teams opted for the 4-2-3-1 setup that showed an inclination towards a midfield-dominated approach. Manchester City, who were already having multiple injury concerns, had one more headache after their previous encounter, where their trusted wall Ederson, got injured. For this reason, Ortega found his name in the starting XI. A team which was the top contender for the league winners for multiple past years were now struggling, and the injury concerns were a key reason for that.
Though the initial minutes were relatively slower than what the fans expected, City had composure and some good positioning. However, they became slippery when it came to the attacking third, as most of the aerial balls that came inside the box went to no-man’s land. City continued to dominate possession and attack through the wings, stretching the backline of the hosts. Nunes made a powerful shot from outside the box, which was saved by the spring reaction of Pickford.
After a moment, Everton players got an idea of their positioning and slowly started to create chances. They tried to attack through the wings, but to their dismay, the City full-backs stood stronger than ever. Immediately, they switched their tactics and started to attack from the centre and win set pieces. One such set piece in the form of a corner found Tarkowski, and he made an unexpected header which, again to the agony of Everton, hit the post. At first half the score was nil-nil, where both teams failed to create any major chances.
In the second half, Everton started to take the initiative to attack and added pressure to the City, who thought that they were having the steering wheel of the game. The game continued, and only a few countable attempts were made by either of the teams. Ortega was one of the important players of the half, keeping the ball away from the goal. Manchester, therefore, from the constant attacks of Everton, became desperate to attack, and in the very dying minutes of the game, they found the back of the net from the services of Nico O’Reilly, who positioned himself at the right place at the right time to tap in and score.
Minutes later, the super sub Kovacic scored the goal for City, sealing the three points. At full time, the score was 2-0 in favour of the visitors, keeping their unbeaten record alive.
Here are the Everton vs Manchester City Player Ratings.
Everton Player Ratings
GK – Jordan Pickford – 7/10
He was put to the test very early in the game, and the player reacted swiftly whenever the opponents attempted to target him. Held his strong hands when Nunes made a 25-30 yard shot, which could have led to some problems. Other than that, he only had some routine saves and clearances. Had a very important hand in an attempt made by City. However, everything came to vain as he was unable to do anything when City scored in the dying minutes, breaking all the defenders.
LB – Vitaliy Mykolenko – 6/10
Was seen in the entire left flank leaving his full back position. Had some contributions in every aspect of the game but his presence in the game eventhough was less important as the contributions in every parts was just countable ones and less impactful.
CB – Jarrad Branthwaite – 6.5/10
Covered both the left back and the centre back position, which gave autonomy to Mykolenko to move forward in the wings and assist Garner and Ndiaye. The source of most long balls came from the defensive third of the hosts.
CB – James Tarkowski – 7.5/10
Positioned himself in the most logical manner during set pieces as he had his head to two set pieces which was destined to be goal. To his misfortune the keeper somehow had his fingertips to both the chances. Was seen to be in great shape and had a brilliant display overall. Unlucky for him, he sustained an injury in the early minutes of the first half which led to him being subbed off.
RB – Jake O’Brien– 6.4/10
Threw himself in front of a ball to defend a stunning goal-bound shot by De Bruyne. Did a decent job in resisting Savinho, who tried to create play from the left wing for the vast majority of the match.
CM – James Garner – 7.2/10
Kept his eyes on the ball and stood tall whenever the opponents tried to make some speedy runs from the centre. Was key in winning back the ball and regaining possesion. Dominated the midfield. Made some strong tackles to keep the ball away from his box.
CM – Idrissa Gueye – 6.2/10
Had a good passing accuracy and won some duels too. However an accumulation of yellow card made his performance a bit slow and he hesitated to take risks. The manager therefore decided to call him back.
LW – Iliman Ndiaye – 7/10
Had a commendable role as a left winger and was key in providing through balls and passes to Doucouré. Was successful in almost all the dribbles he made and duels he was involved in. Though his first half performance was weak, in the second half when his team started to make attacks he had a great role.
AM – Abdoulaye Doucouré – 7/10
Felt like the player was in some pressure as he kept losing the balls which could have created some pressure and possibly won a goal for his team. The tall man was pivotal in winning duels he was involved in be it ground or ariel.
RW – Jack Harrison – 6/10
Though he made attempts to create chances for his team from the right wing, his efforts fell short in front of Nico O’Reilly. Most of the time he came forward with the ball, the defenders covered the fortress, which led to the player taking the ball back to midfield making his role as a winger purpouseless.
CF – Armando Broja – 6/10
Did not have a good day as his attacking initiatives did not reap any results. Was seen off shape and was subbed of in the 63rd minute.
Sub – Michael Keane – 6/10
Sub – Beto – 6/10
Sub – Dwight McNeil – 6/10
Sub – Carlos Alcaraz – 6/10
Sub – Tim Iroegbunam – 6/10
Manager – David Moyes – 7/10
Excecuted his strategy exceptionally throughout the match. Kept the ball, added pressure, attacked and defended well. In the very last minutes the team left some spaces which led to the opponents scoring and this led to downfall.
Manchester City Player Ratings
GK – Stefan Ortega – 7/10
Came in with an intent to prove to the Manager that he, too, deserved a place in the starting eleven, and he proved so. Created some nervy situations by holding the ball for longer periods whenever the defenders made minus passing to him. However, he knew what he was doing and dealt with the situations properly. He was silent in the first half, but in the second half, he made a very important point-blank save to keep the goal. Had some other very important saves that held the deadlock.
LB – Nico O’Reilly – 8/10
Beautifully shadowed the tricky man, Jack Harrison, who tried to make his moves and infiltrate from the right flank. Made some good challenges, which made the opponents retreat the ball and start their build-up once again. Made his presence felt in the attack too by scoring a goal for his team
CB – Joško Gvardiol – 7.2/10
Made some exceptional recoveries and interceptions. Played a high line game and was seen in the midfield area providing support to his midfield teammates.
CB – Rúben Dias – 7.1/10
Compensated for the absence of Gvardiol in the backline and kept the fortress strong and marshalling the defence. Had a very great positioning that helped him make some tackles and interceptions.
RB – Matheus Nunes – 7.3/10
Contributed to the attacks by making some on-target long shots from outside the box. He played a bit higher from his position, making some appearances in the midfield and attacking third. Helped in crafting the attacks of City. He provided an important assist for his team.
CM – İlkay Gündoğan – 7.2/10
Was everywhere in the pitch with some consistent and reliable performance. Everywhere he made moves he was victorious. Was successful in almost every dribbles, won multiple duels and had some clearances and interceptions. The only con he had was that he lost possession about a dozen times, but while comparing it to the number of touches he had it was rather a small propotion. Provided assist for his team.
CM – Nico González – 6.5/10
Made some lovely cushioned headers to send the ball inside the opponent’s box. Was involved in almost all the aerial balls of his team, either acting as a source or as an end point.
LW – Bernardo Silva – 6.8/10
Came back into the defensive third whenever Nunes accelerated a bit forward to take initiatives to attack from his right back position . Was key in clearances but was miserable in duels.
AM – Kevin De Bruyne– 7.2/10
The attacking midfielder was prominent in the opponent half predominantly in the left side of the penalty box. Made his final weeks memorable by having an all round performance. Had a playmaker role throughout the match. Won the respect of the home fans as they gave a standing ovation while he was subbed off.
RW – Savinho – 6.5/10
Though his contributions in the attack were decent, he positioned himself a tad bit lower to defend the ball when Everton got a rythm of the game. Was the man to cleat the balls wheever Everton exploited the set pieces and created a confusion inside the City penalty box. While coming to attack he struggled to get past Jake. The crosses he attempted did not find any of the teammates too. Was subbed off in the second half.
CF – Omar Marmoush – 6/10
Though he was good in the dribbles he lacked finishing. He was terrible in duels, as he managed to win less than 1/3rd the duels he was in. Had a bad day at the office, failing to contribute much.
Sub – Kovavic – 7/10
Scored the second goal, sealing victory for his team.
Sub – Doku – 6.5/10
Sub – Akanji – 6.5/10
Manager – Pep Guardiola – 7/10
Dominated possession and attacked whenever they got an opportunity, a strategy which the gaffer likes. But after a specific moment of the game, it felt like his team lost the intent they had in the beginning. From the time Nunes attempted to score, he was seen frustrated as his team failed to create some steady attacks, which they were able to in the early minutes. However, in the end, his team regained the composure which was lost somewhere in the match.
Sportsdunia’s Man of the Match goes to Nico O’Reilly.
What was the scoreline for Everton vs Manchester City?
0-2 was the scoreline for Everton vs Manchester City
Who were the goal scorers for Everton vs Manchester City?
Nico O’Reilly and Kovacic were the goal scorers for Everton vs Manchester City
Who was the best player for Everton vs Manchester City?
Nico O’Reilly was the best player for Everton vs Manchester City
Who was the worst player for Everton vs Manchester City?
Marmoush was the worst player for Everton vs Manchester City
