Manchester City travelled to Crystal Palace on the last day of the calendar year looking to make it 19 league victories in a row. Pep Guardiola opted for his favoured 4-3-3 formation and was looking to take a 16 point lead at the top of the Premier League standings. However, the Eagles provided a stern resistance at Selhurst Park and earned a credible draw to deny the Citizens in a game full of golden chances and injuries but lacking in goals.
Let’s look at how each Manchester City player fared during the match.
GK: Ederson – 8/10
The Brazilian goalkeeper almost cost his team a goal but redeemed himself by making a great save from Van Aanholt’s deflected attempt and also saved City from their first loss of the season by saving Milivojevic’s late penalty.
RB: Kyle Walker – 8/10
He had a strong game for City at right-back and neutralised the threat of Wilfried Zaha and Patrick van Aanholt with his pace and energy.
CB: Eliaquim Mangala – 7/10
He was involved in a mix up with his goalkeeper but did the little things right to redeem himself and earn a clean sheet for his team.
CB: Nicolas Otamendi – 8/10
He was terrific in possession, passed the ball well and commanded the Manchester City backline from the first minute to earn a well deserved clean sheet for his team.
LB: Danilo – 6/10
He dealt with the pace of Townsend well defensively but failed to provide an outlet for City on the left flank going forward.
CM: Fernandinho – 7/10
He put up another consistent performance for his team in the middle of the park. He broke down many Palace attacks but failed to provide support in the attacking third.
CM: Kevin De Bruyne – 5/10
The Belgian star found this game difficult and struggled to pass the ball well while his shots on goal never looked like going in.
CM: İlkay Gündoğan – 5/10
The Citizens missed David Silva and it showed as he failed to provide a spark at the centre of the park. Not one of his best days in a Manchester City shirt.
RM: Bernardo Silva – 6/10
He was ineffective in the final third. Although, he showed some neat touches on the ball and provided a few dangerous passes to open up the Palace defence.
LM: Leroy Sane – 5/10
He made a few great runs on the left flank but was not productive in the final third. The left-footed winger was unable to come up with a winner which Pep Guardiola’s team was looking for!
ST: Gabriel Jesus – 5/10
He failed to make an impact up until his injury. The Brazilian forward was subbed off early and has seen a dip of form recently.
Substitutes:
CM: Yaya Toure – N/A
The Ivorian midfielder came on too late to make an impact. However, he got a chance from a direct free kick but could only hit the Palace wall.
LM: Raheem Sterling – 5/10
Not his best game for the Citizens, the speedster was unable to net the winner which he has built a reputation on, of late.
ST: Sergio Aguero – 7/10
The Argentine came close to score a winner for City when he hit the post and was unlucky in front of goal on the day.
