Premier League table top players Manchester City Locked in the fourth round of the FA Cup with the high-flying Fulham side of Marco Silva. Guardiola’s side entered the football field as clear favourites, and they showed off their squad-deep prowess by putting a very strong starting 11 on the field.
Manchester City won the match, beating Silva’s Fulham 4-1. The Stones, Gundogan and Mahrez were on Manchester City’s leaderboard, while Fabio Carvalho scored for Fulham. Fulham started well and scored very early, but as the match progressed, the home team showed their quality and changed the course.
Here are the player ratings.
Manchester City
Zack Stefan 6/10
Steffan couldn’t do much about Carvalho’s target because it was more of a defensive fault. However, he should have done better when dealing with Kabano’s shot as the kickback fell at the feet of Carvalho, who could score. The distribution was generally good as the pass success rate was high.
Kyle Walker6/10
Early in the game, Carvalho and Kabano had time to fight while trying to launch attacks from their side. But as the game progressed, he got used to the game and made some good interceptions.
John Stones 7/10
Some of the lobed balls he sent Grealish and Foden on both flanks were very impressive. He led Manchester City after connecting with De Bruyne’s delivery.
Nathan Ake 6/10
Ake, whose playing time has been short lately, has good control of the ball; but he struggled a little while fighting Mitrovic. He failed to follow Carvalho’s move in his first goal.
Joao Cancelo 6.5/10
He misjudged Harry Wilson’s move that contributed to Carvalho’s first goal. He then developed the advance and contributed to the attack from the flank.
Fernandinho 6.5/10
The Brazilian was a good physical presence in Man City’s midfield. He won most of his duels while keeping the back line.
Ilkay Gundogan 7/10
Gundogan was very active throughout the match. Two minutes after Fulham’s goal, which set the mood for the home team, he equalized the goal. He had a great chance to score again when Grealish prepared him a good footwork.
Kevin De Bruyne 7.5/10
He showed his quality on the field by making two assists and creating many good positions. He set the Stones for the first goal and made a perfectly weighted left-footed pass for the fourth goal.
Riyadh Mahrez 7.5/10
The Algerian went out twelve yards to extend the lead. He also went on to score Manchester City’s fourth goal after linking with De Bruyne’s pass.
Jack Grealish 7/10
The old Aston Villa talisman was very lively next to the box. Good footing earned City a penalty. He was a constant threat throughout the game.
Phil Foden 6.5/10
He was in good sync with the Belgian in midfield and left wing and gave Fulham some problems. However, he could not make a direct contribution in terms of goals and assists.
Substitutes:
Zinchenko 6/10
He has a few minutes. After emerging, he did his job trying to keep the ball on his wing while looking for good opportunities to send his middle.
Raheem Sterling 5.5/10
He didn’t get too involved after he arrived as he had very little touch. The game had already been put to bed when he arrived.
Bernardo Silva No
No Delay
No James McAtee
Fulham
Paul Gazzaniga 5/10
He had little faith in dealing with fixed parts. He could not follow Gündoğan’s movement for the first goal. The ball distribution was good but he couldn’t save the goal.
Neco Williams 6/10
He got off to a very good start to the game; however, he gave the ball many times during the game and could not deliver enough to Mitrovic in the following process.
T. Adarabioyo 6/10
He had a good first half as he struggled well to keep his team in the game. In the second half, however, City’s quality was evident and could not prevent goals.
Tim Ream 6.5/10
Determined to stop his runs, he won the ball from De Bruyne. However, he lost most of his ground and air duels, with ascity’s attack perfecting as the game continued.
Joe Bryan 6.5/10
It was pretty impressive in terms of progression and merging with other attackers. He took some good distances to keep the game going and was not faulty on any of the goals.
Harrison Reed 5.5/10
City could not affect the game from midfield as they won the midfield battles. Faulty on Mahrez’s second and Manchester City’s fourth goal of the day.
Neeskens Kabano 6.5/10
Kabano surprisingly enjoyed a lot of ball on the left wing; especially in the starting minutes. He had duels with Walker; some were successful while some were not. He tried to combine with Mitro and Carvalho on the left to add some creativity to Fulham’s play.
Fabio Carvalho 7/10
The British prodigy got a dreamy start to his side after meeting Wilson’s middle just four minutes from the start, putting the ball behind the net with a neat finish from close range. He has drawn a lot of the spotlight lately after connecting with his move to Liverpool.
Harry Wilson 6.5/10
Former Liverpool player Wilson sent Carvalho a very good low shot from the right for his goal. However, he could not see much service on the right wing and could not directly affect the game.
Alexander Mitrovic 6/10
The striker has committed unnecessary fouls many times. He didn’t get much service and especially from set-pieces because of his strong shooting ability. But he couldn’t create much while on the ball.
refills:
Jean Michael Series 5.5/10
He didn’t like his magic after he came, as he lost many duels and received very few touches.
Anthony Knockaert 6/10
By the time he arrived, the game had already been laid to bed. It provided some crosses but was never a threat.
No Tom Cairney
Muniz N/A
No Ivan Cavaleiro
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