Manchester City – Southampton 4-1 Match Report

Match Gallery

Performances

Goals: Yaya Touré (pen) 3, Nasri 45+2, Dzeko 45+4, Jovetic 81

Att: 47,009

Ratings:

Hart: Handled well, distribution a tad erratic: 7
Zabaleta: The penalty aside (and he was put in a difficult position by midfield runners not tracking Cork), this was another quintessentially good Zaba performance: 7
Kompany: Consistently strong and quick at the back on a day when our defence was tested. Highlight was a lovely pass to allow Navas to cross for our fourth goal: 8
Demichelis: His good form continued in a solid display here: 7
Kolarov: Terrific cross set up Dzeko’s goal. Decent enough all round despite Southampton’s mobile attack: 7
Navas: Worked hard defensively, and set up our fourth goal with an excellent cross: 7
Yaya: Despatched his penalty well and played an incisive pass in the build up to the second goal. Improved his intensity levels after a slowish first half. He should have at least had a free kick with a challenge on the edge of the box then was booked for diving later on. A great player and as ever he is a vital part of the City machine, but he has a hot temper and he could have earned a costly second yellow, but for the intervention of his team mates: 7
Fernandinho: Didn’t play with quite the same verve and vigour as we have come to expect. Booked for an unnecessary hand ball, and subbed at half time: 6
Nasri: Right place, right time for his goal but was part of a midfield that lacked intensity in the first half. Like a few others, he improved after the break: 7
Silva: He adorned this game with a velvet touch, sublime intelligence, sumptuous passing and an innate ability to find space in between the lines of defence and midfield. His free “number 10” rôle behind the striker is his best role and it showed yet again here. He is a player who is adored and cherished by City fans. He should know this by now even if we haven’t satisfactorily come up with a special song to match his special talent. “There’s only one David Silva” will suffice: 8 (Man of the Match)
Dzeko: Linked play very well and always looked a threat: he grazed the top of the bar and took his goal superbly well: 7

Subs:

Garcia (for Fernandinho 46): Steady Javi: 6
Negredo (for Dzeko 65): Has lost most of the confidence in front of goal rhat he had in spades before his shoulder injury. Needs a goal – any kind of goal: 5
Jovetic (for Silva 77): Took his goal well: n/a

Best Oppo: Ward-Prowse: Didn’t start but looked a very strong presence in central midfield, outmuscling Yaya on occasion and getting under his skin: 7

Refwatch: Chris Foy: A mixed bag of officiating, the nadir of which was when he very belatedly blew for a foul to City after Silva was about to tee up another chance after some quintessential slick City play. Where was the advantage in that? City were unfairly penalised. It wasn’t all his fault that he didn’t spot Silva being offside, but he got two penalty decisions right and might have awarded a third when Yaya charged through for the for the first time: 4