Manchester City will take a strong advantage into the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final thanks to a 3-0 win over Bayern Munich.
The two favourites for the Champions League this season, many expected this to be a close game and it was for large parts before Man City took the lead through Rodri’s wonder-strike.
Bayern Munich had their chances early on in the second half but goals from Bernardo Silva and, of course, Erling Haaland have put Man City on the brink of yet another semi-final appearance.
Here’s how the players rated at the Etihad:
Manchester City
Ederson – 6 – Good save on Sane early on in the second half but was practically a spectator for the rest of the game.
Manuel Akanji – 8 – Looks like he’s been playing right-back all his life, with another wonderful defensive performance. Kept Bayern’s left side completely on lock.
John Stones – 8 – Some expected him to be more advanced in a midfield role but he slotted in mostly at centre-back in the first half before moving forward as Man City upped their control. Wherever he played, Stones was brilliant, and he chipped in with an assist for Haaland’s goal.
Ruben Dias – 8 – Stopped a certain goal with an excellent block on Musiala’s first-half shot and was an absolute rock at the back.
Nathan Ake – 9 – There aren’t enough superlatives to describe how good Ake was tonight and has been for quite some time. Completely shut Coman out of the game.
Rodri – 8 – Opened the scoring with a beautiful curling effort, after selling Musiala with a simple turn, and was his usual marshalling self in the midfield.
Bernardo Silva – 8 – Dropped deeper almost as a wing-back when defending in the first half and gave Davies nightmares going forward. Got the assist for Rodri’s strike and then grabbed his goal with a good header on the high turnover.
Kevin De Bruyne – 6 – Had his moments but just wasn’t fully in the game. There were some worries from Man City fans as he came off just after appearing to pick up an injury, but for now it doesn’t seem too bad.
Ilkay Gundogan – 8 – Pressed well in his thankless midfield role. He won’t get the plaudits that his teammates do, but it was another great game for the German.
Jack Grealish – 8 – He was kept quiet for large moments in the first half but as the game stretched, Grealish thrived. It was his press on Upamecano that brought the second goal and though he didn’t get a goal or assist, Grealish continued his excellent form.
Erling Haaland – 8 – Should have tested Sommer more with a first-half shot that was tame, but they couldn’t keep him quiet in the end. First he put in a great assist for Silva, lifting the ball across the box when most expected him to shoot, earning some comparisons to De Bruyne. He then got his goal with a good finish at the far post, his 45th for the season – the most for a Premier League player in a single season across all competitions.
Most goals in a single season for a Premier League club in the PL era:
? 45 – Erling Haaland (22/23)
✅ 44 – Ruud van Nistelrooy (02/03)
✅ 44 – Mohamed Salah (17/18)Another record has been destroyed. ? pic.twitter.com/SDTYphNUD6
— William Hill (@WilliamHill) April 11, 2023
Substitutes:
Julian Alvarez (for De Bruyne 68) – 7 – Did well after coming off the bench, adding to Man City’s ridiculous attack.
Bayern Munich
Yann Sommer – 7 – It was a trademark Yann Sommer performance as he was very lucky not to be caught out as Haaland bore down on him just in front of goal early on. But he made up for it with a number of excellent saves, including one to prevent Gundogan from making it 2-0 in the first half that he had no real right to make. Couldn’t do anything about any of the goals.
Benjamin Pavard – 7 – Bayern’s best defender and in the end he just couldn’t hold the back line up on his own. Marked Grealish well in the first half but tailed off eventually and was beaten too easily in the air by Stones who set up Haaland for the third.
Dayot Upamecano – 4 – Strong in the first half but absolutely fell apart after half time. Almost gifted Man City a goal when trying to be too clever on the edge of his own box and was eventually caught out, losing the ball to Grealish for Silva’s goal. Lost his confidence afterwards.
Matthijs de Ligt – 6 – Didn’t really do anything too wrong in the game, but also wasn’t spectacular as those around him fell apart.
Alphonso Davies – 4 – You could be forgiven for forgetting that Davies was on the pitch at times, as he struggled defensively and in attack.
Joshua Kimmich – 6 – Was one of the reasons Man City were only 1-0 up at half-time, defending really well. But his leadership was missing as Bayern capitulated, and could he have charged Rodri down more for the opener?
Leroy Sane – 7 – Bayern’s only good attacking player on the night, looking like he had something to prove on his Etihad return.
Leon Goretzka – 4 – Offered Kimmich no defensive support in midfield as the game passed him by.
Jamal Musiala – 5 – Was unlucky not to score with a well-placed strike which was blocked by Dias but that was the only time he had much of an attacking impact in the match, struggling against Man City’s defenders. Unlucky not to score with a well-place strike blocked by Dias. Gave up too easily to be turned by Rodri
Kingsley Coman – 4 – Shut down by Ake and looked frustrated.
Serge Gnabry – 4 – Struggled to get into the game and wasn’t the forward man Bayern needed to break through Man City’s defence. He cannot start in this role next week.
Substitutes:
Sadio Mane (for Mane 69) – 4 – Had six touches in his 21+ minutes on the pitch. Muller had more in his 10 minutes.
Thomas Muller (for Gnabry 80) – N/A – A late sub.
Joao Cancelo (for Davies 80) – N/A – Booed by fans of his parent club after coming on as a late sub.