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Manchester City player ratings in Spurs defeat

By J.C. Gonzalez

LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 02: Kyle Walker of Manchester City battles for possession with Heung-Min Son of Tottenham Hotspur during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on February 02, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 02: Kyle Walker of Manchester City battles for possession with Heung-Min Son of Tottenham Hotspur during the Premier League match between Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on February 02, 2020 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images) /
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Manchester City were extremely wasteful as they fell 2-0 to Spurs in North London despite controlling much of the game.

With the defeat to Spurs, City remain 22 points behind Liverpool in second and two clear of Leicester. This is the first time in the Pep Guardiola era that City have been held without a goal in two consecutive matches, and the season’s sixth defeat in 25 matches is easily the worst of the Catalan’s tenure at the club.

Defense

Ederson (GK): Saved some chances by coming out of his goal in full sweeper-keeper mode, but had no hope on either Tottenham goal, which were their only real opportunities. (6)

Kyle Walker (RB): Defended reasonably well against his former club, and stopped a big chance from falling to Spurs danger man Dele Alli. (6)

Fernandinho (CB): Cut out several chances on his 300th appearance for the club, and was City’s best defender on a poor defensive day for the team (as per usual these days). (6.5)

Nicolás Otamendi (CB): Opened the space for Heung-Min Son to seal the match, and once again looked shaky against the blistering pace of Spurs’ new-look attack. (5)

Oleksandr Zinchenko (LB): Sent off for a second yellow while City were chasing the game, and deservedly so. Going down to 10 men seriously hampered any real hope of a comeback. (4)

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Midfield

Rodri (CDM): Shielded a weak back four well for much of the game, although the team was poor overall defensively on the day. (6)

İlkay Gündoğan (CAM): A dismal display from the German, and arguably the epitome of City’s poor finishing. Gündoğan’s penalty was poor and comfortably saved by Lloris, before he fired over from 10 yards in what should have been a goal. (4)

Kevin de Bruyne (CAM): Found little involvement in the game, despite putting in a shift for the team and doing everything he could. (6)

Attack

Riyad Mahrez (RW): A tough day for the winger. Although his mazy dribbles would threaten on occasion, he couldn’t find the requisite end product. (5.5)

Sergio Agüero (ST): Had several chances he would have scored on another day, including an empty net at the near post, but was heavily involved, winning the penalty, but a wasteful day from City’s talisman. (6.5)

Raheem Sterling (LW): Easily could have been sent off for a reckless challenge on Dele Alli, and simply did not appear sharp. His pull back for Gündoğan’s miss was far from ideal, and arguably caused the midfielder to blast it over the net. (5)

Substitutes

João Cancelo (LB): Came on after Zinchenko’s red to provide additional cover, but losing Agüero for a defender late in the match hurt the goalscoring effort. (6)

Gabriel Jesus (ST): Failed to make a difference in a 27-minute cameo appearance when City were chasing an equalizer. (6)

Bernardo Silva (RW): Came on in desperation when the result was already essentially decided, and had little opportunity to make his usually-magical presence felt. (6)