'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Manchester City saw off a gutsy Bournemouth team desperate to escape the relegation zone and claimed a hard-fought 2-1 victory.
Pep Guardiola made wholesale changes to the side that defeated Brighton 5-0 in their previous outing, benching hat-trick hero Raheem Sterling among 5 other changes. The Cityzens took the lead after just over 5 minutes of play, and then endured a Bournemouth fightback before doubling their lead in the 39th minute.
Manchester City Player Ratings
Eddie Howe's team-talk at half-time was certainly an inspiring one as Bournemouth upped the ante after the break. In fact, the Cherries were arguably the better team in the second half. They carved out a number of chances and ended the game with more shots than Manchester City. But for all their threat, one goal is all they could muster as luck eluded them on several occasions.
Here are the Manchester City ratings from the match.
Ederson Moraes - 8/10
Ederson had an excellent game and was probably the difference between Bournemouth losing and drawing, if not winning. His distribution was impeccable as usual, but he was even more impressive with his sweeping. He was fearless in rushing out of his box to claim crosses late in the game. His save to deny Stanislas from a free-kick was sensational.
Kyle Walker - 6/10
Walker played just the first-half of this game and was solid without being exceptional. He burst forward a few times to good effect and was secure defensively. Possibly rested for the second-half with the intention of starting against Arsenal in the FA Cup semi-final this weekend.
John Stones - 6/10
Was directly at fault for conceding the goal as he allowed Callum Wilson to breeze past him effortlessly. Other than that one error, he put in a decent shift. His passing was good and he won most of his aerial duels. His Manchester City days still seem numbered though, as the errors just don't seem to evade him.
Nicolas Otamendi - 6/10
Made one stunning block to stop what would've been a certain goal from point-blank range. The Argentine was sometimes rash going into challenges as is typical of him. Found it hard to contain David Brooks when the Welshman came on.
Benjamin Mendy - 6/10
A very average performance from a full-back capable of so much more. For most part of the match, Mendy limited his role to being a passing option of the left flank. His crosses were delivered with inconsistent quality and he was sometimes caught out of position defensively.
Fernandinho - 7/10
Operating in midfield for just the second time this season, Fernandinho was still Manchester City's best defensive presence against an effervescent Bournemouth. He won 7 aerials and was often Manchester City's third center-back when they did not have the ball. The Brazilian was good with the ball too, supplying his teammates expertly, especially in the first-half.
Ilkay Gundogan - 6/10
Manchester City's pass-master had another stellar game when it comes to keeping the team ticking. He attempted nearly a hundred passes with 95% accuracy under 70 minutes of game time. Apart from that, he was a little toothless in attack at times.
David Silva - 9/10
Another exquisite display of free-flowing football from the Manchester City legend. David Silva might be departing the club in just a few more weeks, but he's certainly going out with a bang. He scored another gorgeous free-kick to give Manchester City an early lead, before teeing up Jesus for the team's second. He was incredible to watch and was almost impossible to shove off the ball when he had it. Enjoy it while you still can.
Phil Foden - 6/10
Foden showed flashes of his majestic quality with a few brilliant touches and dribbles, but had an average game overall. He wasn't directly involved with Manchester City's attacks as much as he would've liked to. The youngster has a big future ahead of him and he'd had days much, much better than this.
Bernardo Silva - 5/10
The Portuguese doesn't really look at home on the right-wing, and again failed to influence the game from that position. He worked hard without the ball as is atypical of him, but his class was nowhere to be seen when he had the ball. His passing and dribbling were decent at best and the Manchester City faithful would've expected a lot more from a player of his caliber.
Gabriel Jesus - 8/10
The Brazilian has often come under criticism for his lack of goals, but now he has two in two. He collected Silva's pass before taking three beautiful touches to bamboozle the Cherries' defense, before slotting the ball into the back of the net with power and precision. His work-rate was important for Manchester City in the second half as they tried to preserve their lead.
Manchester City Substitutes
Eric Garcia - 5/10
With no Joao Cancelo on the bench, it was Eric Garcia who had to deputize for Kyle Walker in the right-back position. The young Spaniard certainly didn't look very comfortable there as he was beaten a few times one-on-one. Really promising as a center-back, not so much as a right-back.
Raheem Sterling - 6/10
It was a frustrating half for Sterling who would've liked to get on the ball more than he did. However, courtesy of Bournemouth's ambition in the second-half, he was left alone at the top and barely had any chances to attack the away side's defense.
Rodri - 5/10
Another player who is much more dominant in possession than without it. Rodri came on in the 68th minute and his only job was to provide some stability and height to the Manchester City defense. He'd much rather pull strings from deep in midfield.
Oleksandr Zinchenko - 5/10
The Cherries often attacked his side of the Manchester City defense after the Ukranian replaced Mendy at left-back. Had a tough time dealing with the spirited Bournemouth attackers.
Riyad Mahrez - 5/10
The Algerian was nowhere to be seen as it was the away side who dominated the last few minutes. He was often tucked so deep to help out defensively that he couldn't conjure up any chances on the counter-attack either.
