UEFA Champions League 2018-19, Manchester City 7-0 FC Schalke 04: 5 Hits and Flops

Manchester City cruised to a thumping 7-0 victory against a weak Schalke display at the Ethiad
Manchester City cruised to a thumping 7-0 victory against a weak Schalke display at the Ethiad

#3 Flop: Jeffrey Bruma

Bruma endured a forgettable evening, having given away the penalty and being constantly exposed
Bruma endured a forgettable evening, having given away the penalty and being constantly exposed

Jeffrey Bruma sealed a six-month loan deal from VfL Wolfsburg in January and given Schalke's circumstances, this was the perfect platform for the Dutchman to justify why he's worth a long-term investment.

Performances like this one tonight, however, suggest the opposite. The 27-year-old was error-prone and shaky from the offset so naturally, City pounced on Schalke's weak backline and made them pay accordingly.

He needlessly gave away the spot-kick which started the rout, as he tugged onto Bernardo Silva as the Portuguese international looked to latch onto Ilkay Gundogan's excellent through ball. With Fahrmann coming out to smother the danger, the defender didn't need to do any more than just jockey the attacker - especially given his physical advantage over Silva.

He let Aguero outmuscle and run beyond him during the build-up to his second goal, while caught ball-watching as Sterling ran across him before latching onto Sane's fantastic pass to make it four.

Often ball-watching and too immobile to make much difference, his display was typified by Jesus' strike, the final nail in the coffin for Schalke. He stood with his hands behind his back to avoid being penalised for a handball - flinching when Jesus struck goalwards and ducked out of the way, impeding Fahrmann's line of sight and a half-hearted attempt at blocking the Brazilian's effort altogether. Why stand there then?

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