- Manchester City beat Aston Villa 4-1 at home and trailed the leaders by one point.
- Phil Foden explodes in form Score a hat-trick to help “The Blues” successfully grabbed 3 points.
- Erling Haaland and Kevin De Bruyne were dropped as substitutes in this game.
Manchester City beats Aston Villa 4-1 at home and remains close to the top of the table by one point in the English Premier League.
Rodri scored to put Manchester City ahead 1-0 from the 11th minute, but in the 20th minute the visiting team equalized 1-1 through John Duran. However, Phil Foden exploded in brutal form, scoring a hat trick. Numbers 45, 62 and 69 helped the “Blues” successfully grab 3 points.
At the end of this game, “The Blues” accumulated 67 points, still ranked 3rd in the table, but trailing the leader who changed hands to Arsenal, remaining 1 point.
Foden prefers to play as a playmaker rather than a winger.
With Kevin De Bruyne on the bench, Pep Guardiola has given Phil Foden the chance to continue his role as playmaker, as he shone while the Belgian was recovering from injury.
Foden repaid Guardiola’s trust by scoring a hat-trick in front of his boss. And this is his second hat trick of the season. After doing it in the game against Brentford
After the game, Foden admitted in an interview that he preferred playing as a playmaker rather than a winger. But he wouldn’t mind being played as a winger. Yet it is undeniable that his role as an attacking midfielder has helped him best unlock his potential.
Haaland and De Bruyne were dropped as substitutes.
It was considered quite a surprise that Guardiola chose to drop both Haaland and De Bruyne as just substitutes. In the ยูฟ่าเบท game where you have to meet a strong team that is competing for Champions League space like Villa.
Guardiola revealed that he made that decision because he wanted a fresh team. After just fighting a tough battle with Arsenal scoreless last weekend.
However, it was more effective than expected because Foden, who was substituted in the previous game, exploded into form in his preferred position, including Julian Alvarez, who received full rest, also participating in the offensive game. Even without goals or assists.
Another advantage is that with the collapse of the score, Guardiola will not need to use Haaland and De Bruyne as well, both of whom will be rested before the trip to Crystal Palace this weekend.
The defensive line paraded through injuries during the busy schedule.
Guardiola has had issues with the fitness of his players, especially defenders Nathan Ake, John Stones and Kyle Walker, who are key players for the team.
That’s why the Spanish trainer must continue to use Rico Lewis, a 19-year-old youngster. He will probably start again when the team travels to Crystal Palace and it is expected that the back four is not likely. will change. Which includes Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias and Yosco Guardiol.
Only Sergio Gomez was the only other option in defence. But in the win over Villa he was deployed as a right winger. Which is probably the position he’s more comfortable with.
If Guardiola’s biggest concern these days is his defensive options. Stones has been named as a substitute for the last two games, a sign that he is not yet 100 percent fit. But it is possible that he will play against Palace this weekend.
Collect statistics
- Phil Foden scored his third Premier League hat-trick at the age of just 23. The only players to have scored more hat-tricks than him at the same age are Robbie Fowler (7), Michael Owen (7 times), Harry Kane (6 times) and Erling Haaland (5 times)
- Phil Foden’s hat-trick was the 40th by a Manchester City player in the Premier League. Only Liverpool (42) and Arsenal (41) have scored more in the competition, with 40 hat-tricks. Manchester City’s Rick has 24 hat-tricks under Pep Guardiola.
- Rodri scored his eighth goal of the 2023-24 season for Manchester City in all competitions. The most in a single season. His best stat is 7 goals in the 2021-22 season.