. Two goals up after 25 minutes, there was almost disbelief within the home crowd and not only because Timo Werner had scored the first.
Everybody knew this was not how the story would go and so we had the Manchester City fightback, Matheus Nunes pulling one back before half-time and then a concerted attempt by Spurs to seal the deal. They created chances, a good number of them, some crystal clear and yet they could not take them.
When the substitute, Richarlison, failed to finish at close range on 83 minutes, it felt obvious that City would have the opportunity to save their skins, to rescue a performance that did not reach the levels that Pep Guardiola demands.
They got it, the ball falling to the 19-year-old, Nico O’Reilly, after Guglielmo Vicario had flapped at a corner and his shot was goalbound, only to be cleared off the line by the substitute, Yves Bissouma.
Spurs would get the job done, this a result to energise their season and one they deserved, however much they forced their fans through the wringer. City will look elsewhere for silverware.
It was a night when the teamsheets were always going to be scrutinised – disproportionately so, perhaps – especially after Guardiola’s comments following City’s victory over Watford in the previous round. He said he would “play the second team” in this tie; City were “not going to waste energy, for sure.” And yet they were strong; six changes, although three of them were John Stones, Nathan Aké and Ilkay Gündogan. Which said plenty.
Postecoglou was never going to start with his best XI, however much a constituency of the Spurs fanbase wanted him to; the people who considered this game to be more important than Sunday’s Premier League match against Aston Villa. Postecoglou does not see it that way. He omitted Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie at the outset, Yves Bissouma and James Maddison, too. Nevertheless, it could hardly be described as a weakened lineup.
Udogie was …
Read More
