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- Reigning Premier League Champions Manchester City hosted a resurgent Nottingham Forest in the Etihad Stadium.
- A dominant home side started like a turbojet, as they were 2-0 up within 15 minutes, a lead they took into half-time.
- Rodri was shown an early Red card in the second half but the Champions held on to claim three points.
Manchester City vs Nottingham Forest Timeline
Contents
7′ – A lovely lofted Rodri pass unlocks the Reds’ defence as Kyle Walker runs in behind before setting up Foden, who arrows the volley into the bottom corner.
14′ – The inevitable happens early! Tavares loses possession in a dangerous area, and Foden sneaks the ball into Nunes who dinks it to the back post where Haaland nods it in.
46′ – A moment of madness!! Rodri and Gibbs-White are in a brawl around the corner flag, the City man lashes out and is shown a straight Red Card by Anthony Taylor.
The Big Stat
With this win Pep’s side remain the only team in the division to maintain a perfect start.
Manchester City vs Nottingham Forest player ratings: Star Man
Phil Foden (Manchester City) – 8.20
Technically the England international is one of the best players in the world and it was fully on display, especially during the first 45 minutes. The Stockport Iniesta was at his brilliant best as he took the ball on the half-turn and glided past defenders.
The 23-year-old added substance to his style as his sublime volley gave Citizens the lead. He also initiated the move that led to Haaland’s goal. A spectacular performance.
Manchester City vs Nottingham Forest player ratings: Blues get off the block early
Pep Guoardiola’s terrific treble winners took control of the game early and dictated proceedings from there on even with 10 men for the entierity of the second half.
Manchester City player ratings
Ederson 7/10: Great on the ball and made some great saves as well. His passing is a real weapon for Pep Guardiola’s side.
Kyle Walker 7/10: Provided the width and overlapping runs, guarded against counters and got an assist.
Rúben Dias 7/10: Solid as usual, passed the ball neatly and reacted to threats
Josko Gvardiol 7.5/10: Clever in possession, combative off it
Manuel Akanji 6.5/10: Conceded a yellow but otherwise assured on possession and defensively.
Jérémy Doku 6.5/10: Created chaos with his pace and direct dribbling until he had to be sacrificed.
Rodri 4.5/10: Dictated play, and kept the ball circulating until a moment of madness led to his dismissal early in the second half.
Julián Álvarez 6.5/10: Picked up clever pockets of spaces and played sharp passes while he was on.
Matheus Nunes 7.5/10: Lots of energy from midfield, set up a goal to cap off an excellent display.
Phil Foden 8.2/10: Electric, elusive, and exceptionally effective; glided around the pitch and scored a sublime goal.
Erling Haaland 7/10: Got his customary goal, and bullied defenders, but missed a glorious chance to kill the game.
Kalvin Phillips (sub) 6/10: Shored up the midfield with energy.
Nathan Aké (sub) 6/10: Defended cleverly and passionately.
Jack Grealish (sub): N/A
Forest fail to fire
The Garibaldis were pushed into the backfoot right from the start, and despite Rodri’s red card, they couldn’t find a decisive moment.
Nottingham Forest player ratings
Matt Turner 5/10: Not much he could do about the goals, but didn’t inspire confidence either.
Moussa Niakhate 5.5/10: Looked slow and lacking against dynamic and explosive city attackers.
Willy Boly 7/10: Defended bravely and grew on the ball as the game went on.
Ola Aina 6/10: Had to switch flanks before being taken off, did a decent job.
Nuno Tavares 5/10: Lost the ball for the first goal, and had to be subbed off early through injury.
Orel Mangala 5.5/10: Overrun in the midfield and couldn’t find the killer pass when asked to.
Ibrahim Sangaré 5.5/10: Conceded a yellow, got bypassed easily and couldn’t move the ball forward.
Serge Aurier 5/10: Struggled defensively against Doku in particular, subbed off early in the second half.
Morgan Gibbs-White 6/10: Looked dangerous when he played on the half-turn, sparked some combat but no real end-product.
Nicolas Dominguez 6/10: Safe in possession but without much penetration.
Taiwo Awoniyi 6/10: Battled against city centre-backs but his touch let him down.
Gonzalo Montiel (sub) 6.5/10: Added energy and effort from the bench, was an upgrade on Tavares.
Anthony Elanga (sub) 5.5/10: Injected some enthusiasm from the bench.
Callum Hudson-Odoi (sub) 5.5/10: Threatened from the flank but without any end product.
Chris Wood (sub) 5/10: Didn’t get the service he needed.
Divock Origi (sub) 4.5/10: Couldn’t get into the game as he lost the ball often.
The Final Word
A show of strength from the champions as they go 5 points clear at the top of the table, albeit having played one game more.
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