World Cup Qualifying: How Citizen Internationals Fared in Round #3
By Larry Henry
Manchester City get back to EPL action on Saturday as they host high-flying Everton at the Etihad Stadium. Prior to that, several Manchester City international players were involved in Round #3 of World Cup Qualifying in the UEFA and CONMEBOL groups.
12 Manchester City internationals were available for the third round of matches while Pablo Zabaleta and Nicolas Otamendi were not on the bench or starting line-up for Argentina. Bacary Sagna returned back to Manchester following a thigh muscle tear during France‘s 4-1 win against Bulgaria last Friday. Sagna is expected to miss a month.
Here is a recap of the Manchester City players who featured in Sunday’s, Monday’s, and Tuesday’s third round of qualifiers.
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UEFA:
Alexander Zinchenko (Ukraine). Zinchenko played 63 minutes in Ukraine’s 3-0 victory over Kosovo on Sunday. The youngster had one shot on target, while finishing with a 77% passing completion rate. He was able to play longer than normal, and was used as a winger and a #10.
Bersant Celina (Kosovo). After featuring in Kosovo’s 6-0 defeat vs Croatia last week, the Manchester City loanee was an unused substitute against Ukraine on Sunday.
Aleksandar Kolarov (Serbia). In a 3-4-3 formation, Kolarov featured as a left wing-back in Serbia’s 3-2 home victory over Austria on Sunday. He tallied an assist on Dusan Tadic‘s 74th minute winner. The veteran had a 58% passing completion rate but was a threat making runs down the left flank, similar to his role at MCFC.
Nolito (Spain). Nolito netted a consolation goal for Spain as a 60th minute sub, in their 2-0 road win in Albania on Sunday. It was a neat finish as the winger scored from a right-footed effort that found the bottom right corner. He also finished with a 79% passing completion rate.
David Silva (Spain). The Spanish magician tallied an assist on Diego Costa‘s opening goal in Albania. He also had a 92% passing completion rate, and finished with the third most successful passes on the team.
Ilkay Gundogan (Germany). Gundogan came on for Germany as a second-half sub in a 2-0 home win against Northern Ireland. He finished the match with a 81% passing completion rate and also had a couple of shots blocked.
Joe Hart (England). The Manchester City loanee made three important saves to earn England a point in a 0-0 draw in Slovenia. After an overall sluggish performance by the Three Lions away from home, Hart was called into action numerous times by a potent Slovenian attack.
John Stones (England). Stones played the entire match at centerback in England’s 0-0 draw in Slovenia. Defensively Stones won a tackle, five duels, and one header. Passing-wise, Stones finished with a 94% passing completion rate and made several runs on England corner-kick chances.
CONMEBOL:
Claudio Bravo (Chile). In a 2-1 win over Peru on Tuesday, Bravo was only called into action once. After a shocking 3-0 defeat at Ecuador five days prior, Chile looked much more convincing behind two Arturo Vidal goals.
Sergio Aguero (Argentina). Kun Aguero played the entire match for Argentina against Paraguay on Tuesday but the hosts fell 1-0. Aguero missed a penalty kick opportunity in the 47th minute which could have earned a point for the hosts. He also had three shots on target, won a tackle, seven duels, and two headers. Nicolas Otamendi and Pablo Zabaleta were not listed in the squad for Argentina after starting against Peru five days prior.
Gabriel Jesus (Brazil). The 19-year old netted an opening goal for Brazil in a 2-0 road win in Venezuela on Tuesday. It was a pretty strike as Jesus netted from outside the box with a right-footed strike into the bottom right corner. He finished with a 71% passing completion rate but failed to have any other shots on target.
Fernandinho (Brazil). Fernandinho featured in the entire match for Brazil on Tuesday. He finished with a 90% passing completion rate, while also winning two defensive tackles, seven duels, and four headers. He is a veteran leader for Brazil and looked to have put in a good shift for the visitors in Brazil’s fourth victory on qualifying.
Next: Combined Best XI: Manchester City vs. Everton.
Manchester City was represented proudly throughout the last two rounds of qualifiers, and on Saturday the squad will be back together for Matchday #8 in the Barclays Premier League.