Five Things Learned: Manchester City 4-1 Borussia Dortmund (UEFA Champions League League Phase) | OneFootball

Manchester City fired four goals past Borussia Dortmund on Bonfire Night courtesy of a Phil Foden brace alongside efforts from Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki. 

The 4-1 win sees City maintain their unbeaten run in the UEFA Champions League this season and move up to fourth place in the league phase table, providing significant hope of an automatic place in the last-16 at the halfway stage.  

The Blues started well and applied pressure to the Borussia Dortmund defence early on, particularly through Phil Foden and the England international’s two shots from outside the box saved by Gregor Kobel.

After 22 minutes, it was third time lucky for Foden who rolled a low but precise shot into the bottom left corner from the edge of the penalty area past Kobel to give Manchester City the lead – Foden’s first in the Champions League in exactly a year.

Seven minutes later it was Erling Haaland’s turn as Tijjani Reijnders’ initial shot was beaten away by Kobel, only as far as Jeremy Doku – who dazzled past Julian Ryerson and cut the ball back for the Norwegian to smash a first time strike into the back of the net against his former club.

Manchester City continued to dominate the Germans in the second half and got their third in the 57th minute – Phil Foden scoring another from the edge of the area, again beautifully placed into the bottom left corner.

The 25-year-old becomes the second player to score two goals from outside the penalty area in a UEFA Champions League match on Bonfire Night after Alessandro Del Piero for Juventus against Real Madrid in 2008 – a unique statistic to say the very least.

Borussia Dortmund threatened for the last 20 minutes and got a goal back through defender Waldemar Anton after he tapped home from Ryerson’s cross, beating Gianluigi Donnarumma down low to the Italian’s left.

Dortmund’s danger and the rare threat of a comeback in the game forced Pep Guardiola to bring on Ruben Dias as an extra centre-back to stabilise the Manchester City defence. But in stoppage time, it was another substitute in Rayan Cherki who restored the three-goal lead, dribbling towards the Dortmund defence before powering a deflected strike into the back of the net.  

The goal was Rayan Cherki’s first at the Etihad Stadium, and given his form during the opening weeks of his Manchester City career it is likely to be the first of many for a player quickly becoming a fans’ favourite.

Here are Five Things We Learned from our 4-1 win over German side Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday night!

Phil Foden is back!

It feels as though Phil Foden is still that young lad that broke into the team in the 2018/19 season as an 18-year-old from Stockport. But he’s now 25-years-old and has been performing at the highest level for the last seven years.

He plays football with a smile on his face and puts a smile on the faces of most of those who watch him. A dazzling player who – after a below par season last year – looks back to his brilliant best.

Two goals on Wednesday night, casually creating the most chances in the match (3), bumping his season tally up to nine goals or assists for the campaign. A personal accolade for Foden as well as he scored twice in a Champions League match for the first time in his career.  

Speaking to broadcasters following the win, Pep Guardiola said when quizzed on whether Foden is back to his best, “I’d say he’s already there! There’s no need to be closer! How many times have we seen that [goal] from Phil, right?!

“That generosity with effort, but especially in the final third. We’ve missed it a lot. This season he’s back, yeah.”

Foden also spoke to television broadcasters about his enjoyment for football at the moment, “Loving it! Just need to play with a smile on my face, which I’m doing. Obviously last year was tough for, not just me myself but everyone.

“There’s a new togetherness this season and you could tell today Dortmund caused some problems, a great team, but we stuck at the plan, broke them down with our talent up front and that’s what we want to try and do.”

Rayan Cherki MUST start against Liverpool!

When Rayan Cherki was announced as a Manchester City player in the summer, everyone was buzzing with excitement to see him play in sky blue. And he has not disappointed at all in his opening run of appearances.

Despite being injured for the best part of two months, the Frenchman has accumulated seven goals or assists and more impressively, is averaging a goal or assist every 45 minutes of football in a Manchester City shirt. Outrageous numbers for him, and he is simply a joy to watch all-round.

The fancy flicks, the skills, every time he gets the ball – it is hard to predict what he will do next but you just know it is going to be beautiful. Five of his seven goal contributions this season have come in the last three matches and after not starting on Wednesday night, everything is pointing towards a start in the crucial match against rivals Liverpool on Sunday.

Manchester City have been questioned at times so far this season about where the goals come from aside from Erling Haaland, and the answer has to be Rayan Cherki. An unbelievable talent.

Pep Guardiola briefly previewed Manchester City’s huge game against Liverpool on Sunday, “They’ve been our biggest rivals in the last nine, 10 years so it’s not necessary to say how good they are.

“But we’re ready. Now, tomorrow training, recover, one day off, and prepare the game as best as possible. We talked a lot about this week, how important it was, and we’ve handled it really, really well.

“And it’s a pleasure to face them, and with our people, our fans – I know how much it means – and hopefully we can do a good game.”

Nico and Nico

Starting with Nico O’Reilly, the starlet has long filled in at left-back and once again fit in like a glove on Wednesday night against Borussia Dortmund. It is certainly not his natural position but he makes it look like it is. A quality performance once again from the youngster and the future looks bright for the 20-year-old.

As for Nico Gonzalez, composed and controlled once more. In my opinion, if Manchester City had not have signed the Spaniard in January, and with Rodri struggling with injuries, things could be a lot worse for the Blues. Nico has taken up responsibility brilliantly, getting better and better with every match, proving to be vital.  

Manchester City’s attacking prowess

Manchester City’s attack has been questioned at times this season due to the majority of goals being scored by Erling Haaland. In the Premier League, no one has scored multiple goals for the club other than Haaland and Burnley’s Maxime Esteve.

However, with Rayan Cherki looking better and better, Phil Foden’s two excellent goals against Borussia Dortmund, it feels as though that will change very soon and the Blues do not really have anything to worry about.

Jeremy Doku was a nightmare to Dortmund defenders and picked up an assist in the process, while Tijjani Reijnders grabbed two assists both for Foden’s arrowed efforts.

With Liverpool to play in three days time – a team that Erling Haaland has struggled against in England so far – the goals may have to come from somewhere else, but the Norwegian will probably have other ideas anyway.

The Big Friendly Giant

Ever since Gianluigi Donnarumma signed for Manchester City in the last few hours of the summer transfer window, the Italian has been a revelation in between the posts for the club.

The 26-year-old made his debut in the Manchester derby and pulled off an unbelievable save to deny a Bryan Mbeumo volley that looked certain to hit the back of the net, and proceeded to knee slide in front of the away fans after Erling Haaland’s goal in the same game.

His passion for the club and the cause at hand is already amazing to see, celebrating every goal as if he has scored it himself, while his relationship with the defensive unit in front of him, celebrating wins at full time, is a breath of fresh air and the sort of energy the Club certainly needed after last season.

There is of course the obvious matter that Gianluigi Donnarumma is a very decent goalkeeper to go along with it all, and still only 26-years-old, you would hope he is with the club for as long as possible. A brilliant character.