A Riyad Mahrez brace helped Manchester City brush aside Fulham 4-1 in the FA Cup fourth-round tie at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.
Premier League table-toppers Manchester City progressed to the fifth round of the FA Cup after coming from behind to secure a comfortable 4-1 victory over Marco Silva’s high-flying Fulham. The visitors opened the scoring with their first attack of the game when Fabio Carvalho turned in Harry Wilson’s cross to complete a wonderful free-flowing move, pouncing on City’s early lapse in concentration.
However, the Sky Blues quickly turned things around through quickfire goals from Ilkay Gundogan and John Stones. Riyad Mahrez timed his pass precisely to find Gundogan in the box, who finished with a flourish to bring City level, before Stones headed in from a Kevin De Bruyne corner to put the hosts ahead in the 13th minute.
The Premier League champions maintained their dominance but failed to convert any of their openings, until they grabbed that vital third goal early in the second half when Fulham carelessly gave the ball away and Grealish danced into the penalty area before being brought down. Mahrez stepped up to convert from the resulting penalty with a composed strike.
The visitors were eventually the engineers of their own demise, and the fourth City goal was another gift from Fulham, who lost the ball in a dangerous area. De Bruyne collected it and found Mahrez, whose weak first-time shot deflected in off Fulham defender Tim Ream. The Hard Tackle will now run the rule over Guardiola’s men after another controlled and classy display at the Etihad Stadium.
Zack Steffen: 6/10
Steffen could not do much to stop Fulham’s opener, but was alert to any possible danger and dealt with it effectively. He did everything right for the rest of the game, except a few sluggish passes from the back. He was not tested much by Fulham attackers and only faced three shots on target.
Kyle Walker: 6/10
Walker had a shaky start to the game as he struggled to contain the double act of Fabio Carvalho and Neeskens Kebano, who were trying to launch attacks from his side. However, he grew into the game with time and made some vital interceptions and clearances. His recovery pace bailed the team out late on in the game.
John Stones: 8/10
Looked comfortable throughout the game and did not panic after a frantic start. Stones’ distribution was elegant and some of the lobbed passes were impressive – especially one tremendous pass which almost set Mahrez free. The Englishman gave Manchester City the lead with a towering header from De Bruyne’s delivery.
Stones did some smart defending as well before the Citizens eventually put the game beyond Fulham’s reach. He produced three tackles, two key passes and completed the most number of accurate passes (81) and long balls (10).
⚽️ GOAL!
John Stones makes it 2-1 to Manchester City#MCIFUL | #EmiratesFACup
pic.twitter.com/cnn5TApgYc— Fast Football Goals (@fastfootygoal) February 5, 2022
Nathan Ake: 5.5/10
The Dutchman had some shaky moments, which is probably understandable given he has been short of game-time recently. He was relatively composed on the ball but was given a hard time in a physical battle against Fulham hitman Aleksandar Mitrovic. The 26-year-old was also dragged out of position a fair few times and failed to track the movement of Carvalho for the first goal.
Joao Cancelo: 6/10
There were a few weak defensive moments, particularly for the goal, as he miscalculated Harry Wilson’s movement, failing to stop the cross. However, he improved after that and always got forward. The Portuguese full-back also played a brilliant ball in the build-up to City’s equaliser.
Fernandinho: 6.5/10
Well into his thirties, Fernandinho lacked legs and pace in the middle of the park, as seen by his many mistimed challenges against Fulham. He was outpaced by Carvalho early on, but his technical abilities and aggression still held up strong against the Cottagers. The Brazilian patrolled the base of the midfield well enough and won the bulk of his ground duels, although he nearly gifted Fulham a late chance.
Ilkay Gundogan: 7.5/10
Scored another vital goal to bring the Citizens level inside a couple of minutes after they went behind. It was a trademark well-timed late run into the box from Gundogan before he slammed home the ball. He had a golden opportunity to double his tally when Grealish set him up after some mesmerising footwork.
Kevin De Bruyne: 8/10
?? Kevin De Bruyne vs Fulham:
? 2 Assists
✅ 48 Touches
? 23 Accurate Passes
? 76.7% Pass Accuracy
? 5 Key Passes
? 3 Ground Duels Won
? 2 Tackles
☄️ 2 Accurate Long Balls?????-?????… ?? #MCFC pic.twitter.com/8wYJRLnDlU
— Manchester City News (@ManCityMEN) February 5, 2022
De Bruyne showcased his quality on the pitch as he provided two assists and created multiple quality chances. His great delivery from a corner kick set up Stones for the second City goal and he also provided a perfectly weighted pass with his left foot for the fourth goal.
The Belgian playmaker is a master of defence-splitting through balls that curve in front of the centre-backs. He was at the heart of everything good for the Citizens. He also played a match-high five key passes on the day.
Riyad Mahrez: 9/10
The Algerian had another excellent performance as he continues his fine form. He first set Gundogan up for the leveller with a simple lay-off and later confidently dispatched from twelve yards in the second half. He also went on to score City’s fourth goal to put the game to bed. He is Manchester City’s leading goalscorer this season.
Manchester City's top scorers this season:
◉ Riyad Mahrez (15)
◉ Raheem Sterling (9)
◉ Bernardo Silva (8)Six goals more than any other player. ? pic.twitter.com/E3VT4JlwDW
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) February 5, 2022
Phil Foden: 6.5/10
The 21-year-old was one of Manchester City’s quieter attacking players on the day, but he still got involved and produced several moments of brilliance to get the crowd off their seats. He looked shaky in the central role, but combined well with De Bruyne when moved into the midfield and on the left wing to cause damage to Fulham without making a direct contribution in terms of goal or assist.
Jack Grealish: 7/10
Grealish’s run to win the penalty was magnificent, and it is precisely the type of directness City need from him. However, it came after a dire first-half in which nothing seemed to be clicking for the Englishman. The former Aston Villa talisman was lively near the opposition box and was a constant threat in the second half with his exceptional footwork.
Substitutes
Raheem Sterling: 5/10
Sterling looked lively whenever he got the ball. However, he was not involved much after coming on and had only 12 touches as the game was practically done and dusted by the time he came on.
Oleksandr Zinchenko: 5/10
He got some playing time under his belt and did his job after coming on, attempting to keep the ball on his flank while looking for the right opportunities to surge forward to send crosses into the box.
Liam Delap: 6/10
He had some good moments and found himself in promising positions. He was perhaps unlucky to have a goal ruled out for offside.
James McAtee: N/A
Did not play enough to warrant a rating.
Bernardo Silva: N/A
He buzzed around the pitch, showing his usual impressive work rate.
