Manchester City versus Newcastle United- player ratings

Manchester City versus Newcastle United- player ratings

Manchester City

Hart- 6- had very little to do, dealt with the only Newcastle shot on target comfortably.

Zabaleta- 8- caused problems throughout the night, him and Navas gave Newcastle’s makeshift left back Mapou Yanga-Mbiwa a nightmare, less so Paul Dummett in the second half but this may have been because the game was already wrapped up.

Kompany- 7- solid throughout the night, crucial interception on Cisse in the first half as it led directly to a Manchester City goal. City must hope the injury he limped off with isn’t bad as he is crucial to them.

Lescott- 6- was solid enough with everything he had to deal with but in truth he was rarely tested throughout the night.

Clichy- 6- Ben Arfa caused him a few problems but by and large he managed to keep him in check, was less effective going forward than Zabaleta from the other side however.

Navas- 8- Fantastic debut and it’s easy to see what a fantastic asset he is going to be to this Manchester City side, pace in wide areas and fantastic crossing ability.

Fernandinho- 7- powerful midfield display on his debut as him and Toure dominated the centre of the park.

Toure- 8- as with Fernandinho, it was a typically powerful performance from the Ivorian added to by a brilliant freekick even if the wall could have done a bit better to keep it out.

Silva- 9- spectacular performance from the Spanish playmaker as he drifted all over the pitch, Newcastle struggled to pick him up throughout the night, was the man of the match for me, by the time he went off the game was wrapped up.

Aguero- 8- a return to his best was evident in this performance, a great finish for the second goal when it looked like Taylor had done enough to force him wide. Was lively throughout the night as he drifted into little pockets of space behind Dzeko.

Dzeko- 8- all his performance lacked was a goal, a terrific performance and he will thrive on the service that Navas will provide this season. Linked up well with the team in possession which represents an improvement for the Bosnian striker as a criticism labelled at him is that he often slows the play down but that did not happen last night.

Subs

Nasri- 7- the game was won by the time he came on but he managed to get himself a goal through good anticipation and Debuchy falling asleep.

Garcia-5- Did solidly enough when he came on but the truth is he had nothing to do at centre back.

Negrado- 6- some nice touches from the big target man but the game was over by the time he came on and City didn’t really get out of second gear whilst he was on so to judge him on this game would be difficult.

Newcastle United

Krul-8- If it hadn’t been for the Dutchman it would have been a lot more than four. He made a string of good saves during the encounter and spectators will have felt sorry for him that he did not have more protection from his back four.

Debuchy-2- I can accept bad performances, every player in this match will have a poor performance at some point during this season. What I can’t accept is a lack of effort and care and Debuchy seemed to show that last night. He seemed unwilling to put himself on the line for his teammates and I hope that someone in the Newcastle team has told him in no uncertain terms that this is not acceptable.

Taylor- 3- brainless sending off when the game was already up, meaning his position may be in danger after his three match suspension. Was struggling with Dzeko’s movement already during the game before his red card.

Coloccini- 5- he kept fighting whilst others around him gave up, he struggled with Aguero’s fantastic movement but kept at it throughout the night, Coloccini is the only clear leader in the side and the Newcastle skipper needs to have harsh words with his team after this performance.

Yanga-Mbiwa- 4- He struggled at left back against Navas and Zabaleta but that is unsurprising as he is not a fullback, he performed much better when he was moved to the centre of defence.

Ben Arfa- 7-The one spark in the side not only last night but regularly in this Newcastle side. Sylvain Marveaux also provides a spark when he plays but Pardew seems reluctant for whatever reason to select the former Rennes man. Ben Arfa caused the City defence problems when he had the ball but too often it looked like he had to do everything on his own and that is worrying from a Newcastle point of view.

Tiote- 4- He gave the ball away far too often and it looked like he had kept his form of last season rather than that of his first 2 seasons in England. The lack of a creative man alongside him in Cabaye’s absence however, made him try to be more creative leading to him giving the ball even more often.

Sissoko- 4- The French international was practically non-existent for the entire 90 minutes as Toure and Fernandinho dominated the midfield, it didn’t help him in fairness than Alan Pardew forced him to play on the left wing during the second half which is clearly not his position.

Gutierrez- 5- The Argentine battled gallantly whilst he was on the pitch, many fans myself included feel he is passed it but you can never fault the endeavour the winger gives you. I thought he was one of the better performers last night for Newcastle before a hamstring injury forced him off.

Gouffran- 5- the Frenchman tried hard whilst he was on and was Newcastle’s second best attacking threat after Ben Arfa.

Cisse- 2- Cisse like Debuchy for me was guilty of a lack of effort last night. That’s unlike Cisse as he usually tries his best for the team but his performance last night was not acceptable. Added to this every touch he took seemed to just present the opposition with the ball back putting Newcastle under increased pressure during the 90 minutes.

Subs

Anita-3- I’m a big fan of Anita but it’s fair to say last night was not his best performance in black and white. He gave the ball away too frequently and struggled to stamp himself on the game. However, Anita was only on when Newcastle had 10 men so it is harsh to criticise the deep-lying playmaker too much for not creating much.

Dummett- 6- The Welsh under 21 international looked solid on his premier league debut. Whilst Manchester City certainly dropped their tempo in the second half and so it was easier than the first half to defend, the academy graduate did a good job in keeping Navas at bay.

Sammy Ameobi-5- the tall winger did very little worth commenting on during his brief substitute appearance although he didn’t do much wrong after coming on.