Manchester City 2 Bournemouth 1: City player ratings as Manchester City book another trip to Wembley | OneFootball

Manchester City 2 (Erling Haaland 49′, Omar Marmoush 63′)

Bournemouth 1 (Justin Kluivert 20′)

Here are the City player ratings and match from report from the Vitality Stadium as Manchester City beat Bournemouth 2-1 to progress in the FA Cup.

Pep Guardiola’s starting lineup raised eyebrows ahead of kickoff. The midfield trio of Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan and Mateo Kovacic did appear to be lacking legs against Bournemouth’s energetic lineup. Perhaps Wednesday night’s clash with Leicester City was on Pep Guardiola’s mind with his team selection for today’s match.

But Pep Guardiola’s selections paid off as did his halftime move to bring on Nico O’Reilly. The City player ratings reflect this and the manner of Manchester City’s second-half performance.

First half

The game kicked off bathed in sunshine, and Bournemouth made a bright start to the game in the opening five minutes. They didn’t create any chances of note but there was an energy to their pressing. Their high press did appear to rattle Pep Guardiola’s side in the game’s opening stages.

It would be Manchester City who would have the game’s first chance of note. A well-worked City move saw Matheus Nunes play in a wicked cross from City’s right-hand side. But Erling Haaland headed wide from a good position. Haaland’s reaction to his miss told you all you needed to know about the quality of chance he squandered.

In the 12th minute, Manchester City would earn a penalty. Tyler Adams handled a Bernardo Silva flick in the box which saw a penalty awarded to Manchester City. Adams can have no complaints as his arm was in an unnatural position. Up stepped Erling Haaland who saw his penalty well saved by Kepa down to his left.

Erling Haaland would make it a hat trick of missed chances in the 16th minute. A miskick from Tyler Adams played Haaland clean through on goal. But his chip went over the bar with the onrushing Kepa well beaten. Manchester City were creating chances but you did wonder if they would be made to pay for Haaland’s wastefulness in front of goal.

Bournemouth take the lead after a poor pass from Matheus Nunes.

In the 20th minute, Bournemouth would take the lead. A misplaced pass from Matheus Nunes was intercepted by Lewis Cook in a dangerous area of the pitch. From there a quality cross found Evanilson. His finish beat Ederson and Justin Kluivert was on hand to bundle the ball home. It was a poor pass from Nunes but Manchester City paid the price for their wastefulness in front of goal and some poor defending.

Ilkay Gundogan would force a quality save from Kepa in the 23rd minute. Gundogan unleashed a shot from the edge of the area after being teed up by Erling Haaland. But Kepa got down to his right to make a good save.

From there the game settled into a pattern. Manchester City were comfortable in possession but Bournemouth posed a constant threat on the counter. Manchester City did have a few half chances up until the 40th minute, but poor delivery or decision-making proved costly.

Bournemouth would take a 1-nil lead into halftime. Pep Guardiola’s side would be kicking themselves over Erling Haaland’s missed chances and the fact that another individual error cost them. Manchester City would have it all to do in the second half; otherwise, they’d be ending the 24/25 with no silverware.

Second half

The second half kicked off with Pep Guardiola bringing on Nico O’Reilly in place of Abdukodir Khusanov.

Phil Foden would have the first chance of the second half. Foden made a driving run from midfield after being set free by a sublime flick from Bernardo Silva. Foden drove into the Bournemouth penalty area but saw his shot saved by Kepa.

Erling Haaland equalises as Manchester City up the tempo.

Manchester City would draw level in the 49th minute. A sweeping move, which was started by a quality ball from Kevin De Bruyne, set Nico O’Reilly free on the left wing. O’Reilly played in a quality ball to the back post and Erling Haaland was on hand to tap in to make it 1-all. It was a sublime move from Manchester City as Pep Guardiola’s side upped the ante to begin the second half.

Erling Haaland was substituted on the hour mark with an apparent ankle injury. The injury occurred in the 55th minute when Lewis Cook fell across Erling Haaland’s ankle.

Omar Marmoush makes an instant impact to give Manchester City the lead.

In the 63rd minute, Manchester City would take the lead. Ilkay Gundogan attempted to play Nico O’Reilly on City’s left-hand side. His pass fell short but O’Reilly never gave up on the ball. After Antoine Semenyo made a challenge O’Reilly picked up the ball and played a sublime ball to Omar Marmoush. Marmoush fired home past Kepa to give Manchester City a 2-1 lead. All credit has to go to Nico O’Reilly for his play to set up the goal.

Two minutes later, Omar Marmoush would see a header cleared off the line by Marcos Senesi for Bournemouth, with Kepa well beaten. Marmoush met a cross from Matheus Nunes and you did sense if City scored a third it would be tie over.

From the Omar Marmoush chance to the 80th minute Manchester City managed the game well. They controlled possession and limited the threat of Bournemouth going forward. But you did sense that the game had one more goal in it as it entered the closing stages.

Ilkay Gundogan would strike the post after some sublime play from Jack Grealish. Grealish set up Gundogan for a shot from the edge of the area, and his left-footed strike hit the post.

Manchester City managed the game’s closing stages up until the 90th minute. But they had 7 minutes of injury time to navigate.

James McAtee almost put the game to bed in the 92nd minute. After Jack Grealish set up Kevin De Bruyne his blocked shot fell into the path of McAtee. But his shot was well saved once again by Kepa.

Manchester City would successfully navigate the game’s final stages to book their place in the semi-finals of the FA Cup. They will face Nottingham Forest at Wembley. At halftime the City player ratings would have been bleak reading but that equation changed with Manchester City’s dominant second half performance.

Summary.

It was a tale of two halves for Manchester City at the Vitality Stadium. If Erling Haaland’s finishing was up to his usual standards they would have put the tie to bed early on. But that and an error from Matheus Nunes helped Bournemouth take the lead.

But in the second half, Manchester City put in one of their best performances of the season. They dominated the game and the introduction of Nico O’Reilly changed the game. The City player ratings reflect his performance and the brilliance of De Bruyne and his teammates.

City player ratings

Ederson-6/10: Didn’t have a lot to do in goal but perhaps could’ve done better for Bournemouth’s goal.

Matheus Nunes-5.5/10: He got forward well but his mistake did lead to Bournemouth’s goal. That’s the side of his game he must improve.

Abdukodir Khusanov-5/10: Misplaced a few passes and wasn’t as composed as we have seen him in other games. He wasn’t City’s worst player but he wasn’t at his best before being substituted at halftime.

Ruben Dias-7/10: Was superb in defence, especially in the second half.

Josko Gvardiol-7/10: Played well in defence, especially in the second half at centre-back.

Mateo Kovacic-7/10: Played well in midfield and held his position well as a number six. He grew into the game as did his team in the second half.

Ilkay Gundogan-7.5/10: I thought Gundogan played well before he was substituted. He played a crucial role in Manchester City’s second-half performance, and it was one of his best performances of the season, in my opinion.

Kevin De Bruyne-9/10: He was absolutely superb. He willed his team to victory, and his all-around performance was brilliant.

Bernardo Silva-7/10: Grew into the game and played well.

Phil Foden-5.5/10: He was quiet in the first half but was more lively in the second half before he was replaced.

Erling Haaland-6/10: Scored one and should have scored four. Worryingly was substituted with an apparent ankle injury on the hour mark.

Substitutes

Nico O’Reilly-10/10: He grabbed two assists and changed the game in the second half. A brilliant display.

Omar Marmoush-7/10: Scored the winner and was lively after coming on.

Jack Grealish-7/10: Was lively and offered plenty on the left wing. His best showing for some time.

Nico-N/A: Not on long enough to mark.

James McAtee- N/A: Not on long enough to mark.