Aston Villa 2-1 Man City player ratings: Morgan Rogers makes former club pay at Villa Park

Manchester City‘s freefall continued as they were beaten 2-1 by Aston Villa at Villa Park in the Premier League on Saturday.

Aston Villa scored a goal in each half against the defending champions, with Morgan Rogers involved in both. Jhon Duran got the scoring underway, set up by Rogers, who then scored Villa’s second. It’s the eighth consecutive away game in which Man City have conceded at least two goals. Man City did pull a goal back in injury time through Phil Foden, but it proved to be too little, too late.

The win sees Villa leapfrog Man City in the table, with Pep Guardiola’s side currently sixth. But they could be as low as ninth before the weekend is up. Man City have already lost nine games across all competitions this season, more than they had suffered in the previous 106 combined.

Aston Villa player ratings

Emiliano Martinez: 80%

Once again named the Best Men’s Goalkeeper in the world, Emiliano Martinez lived up to that title. He’ll be disappointed to have conceded late on, but the Argentine still managed to make five shots, preventing 0.49 goals. As always, Martinez was in firm command of his box, including one cross caught and a punched clearance.

Matty Cash: 52%

This was a quiet game for full-backs across both sides. Matty Cash had a tough challenge up against Jack Grealish, who was looking to silence the Villa Park boos. Cash won one tackle and made one clearance and was dispossessed once in his own half. But he did help keep Aston Villa on top of things with five possessions won in the defensive third, more than any other player.

Ezri Konsa: 56%

Playing in the heart of Villa’s defence, Ezri Konsa helped to keep Man City’s attack as quiet as he could with three clearances. But he was the less busy of Villa’s two centre-backs. Konsa was sharp on the ball, with a retention rate of 92% and 91.1% passing accuracy.

Pau Torres: 64%

Pau Torres made five clearances at Villa Park on Saturday, more than any other player. He also made two ball recoveries and blocked one shot. The Spaniard was pretty decent with the ball at his feet too, completing five long passes. His retention rate of 90.91% was particularly impressive, even if it was bettered by his partner.

Lucas Digne: 51%

Lucas Digne was second to Cash for possessions won in the defensive third, with four in total. The Frenchman also won one tackle and made two clearances, with three final third entries. But the fact that Villa faced six shots on target does count against their defence.

Boubacar Kamara: 68%

Boubacar Kamara was in fine form at the heart of Villa’s midfield, with four tackles won, more than any other player on the pitch. He was key in winning the ball back for Villa and won seven of his duels. Kamara also helped keep Villa in control, completing 85.71% of his passes into the final third and 89.83% of his open play passes.

Amadou Onana: 57%

Amadou Onana wasn’t bad, but he did let his partner take a lot of the responsibilities given how Villa’s midfield works. Nonetheless, he still chipped in with an interception and tackle won alongside four duels won.

John McGinn: 66%

John McGinn set up Villa’s second with a nice pass to Rogers, waiting for the perfect moment and utilising a distracting wide run. That was one of four chances McGinn created, more than any other player on the pitch. Of course, the Scot also did his bit in winning the ball back, with seven ball recoveries another match-high for outfield players. No player had more penalty area entries than McGinn’s six either.

Youri Tielemans: 59%

Youri Tielemans started further forward but he was very much pulling the strings from a more central role — not getting overly involved in the final third. He was the man starting the moves from further back, including a wonderful pass through to Rogers in the build up to the opener. Tielemans also provided a good off-the-ball run to drag a defender away for the second. Although he score isn’t the highest, this was a solid display.

Morgan Rogers: 80%

Morgan Rogers scored and assisted in the same Premier League game for the first time in his career, and what a team to do it against. The Englishman was in good form against his former club. He started the move for his goal from just outside the Villa box and beat Ortega with a good finish. It was a standout performance for Rogers, who had five penalty area entries, one big chance created and three take-ons completed to go with his goal and assist.

Jhon Duran: 70%

Handed his sixth start of the season for Villa across all competitions, Jhon Duran once again made his moment count. The Colombian opened the scoring having been played through by Rogers, and has now scored in all six games he’s started across all competitions this season. It came after he had already missed a good opportunity to score, not letting that get to him. He finished the game with an xG overperformance of 0.7 and five touches in the opposition box.

Man City player ratings

Stefan Ortega: 62%

Stefan Ortega was back in the starting XI with Ederson out due to injury. In the early stages the German produced a brilliant save off the line from corner, just about keeping the ball out. That was one of four saves he made, but Ortega still conceded two goals — 0.07 more than expected.

Rico Lewis: 52%

Back in the team after suspension, Rico Lewis wasn’t bad but he also didn’t stand out too much. He had one tackle won and one interception retaining possession, with just one possession won in the defensive third. He did have five final third entries but also wasn’t as impactful in the opposition half as Man City will have wanted him to be.

Manuel Akanji: 60%

Manuel Akanji was a doubt to start at Villa Park but he did and could generally leave with his head held high. He was reliable as anything on the ball, with a retention rate of 93.18% and more touches and passes than any other Man City player. Defensively, Akanji chopped in with two clearances and a crucial interception in his own box.

John Stones: 51%

Another doubt going into the game, Stones only lasted 45 minutes, replaced by Kyle Walker at half-time. The Englishman did not lose possession with a single touch, boasting a 100% retention rate and 58 out of 58 passes completed. But he didn’t contest a single duel defensively, and won possession just once during his time on the pitch.

Josko Gvardiol: 47%

Josko Gvardiol had seven final third entries and two touches in the opposition box, but couldn’t be the hero Man City needed. He also struggled defensively, failing to win a single tackle, losing a challenge and being dispossessed in his own half once. Gvardiol did make three clearances and win possession twice in the defensive third but it wasn’t enough to stop the Villa attack.

Ilkay Gundogan: 49%

This wasn’t a great game for Ilkay Gundogan. The German didn’t win a single tackle and had two unsuccessful touches, contributing to a pretty low retention rate of 75%. He did won possession twice in the middle third and had two ball recoveries though. At the other end of the pitch, Gundogan completed just one pass into the final third.

Mateo Kovacic: 55%

As always, Mateo Kovacic was good on the ball for Man City, with 93.33% open-play passing accuracy and a retention rate of 90.41%. But he didn’t offer too much in terms of shielding the Man City defence. The Croatian won one tackle and made one interception retaining possession alongside one possession won in the middle third.

Bernardo Silva: 61%

Starting out wide, Bernardo Silva did a respectable job in trying to help defensively, with five ball recoveries. He also created two chances and completed 12 final third passes. But he didn’t get into the penalty area enough with just one touch in the opposition box, as Man City were frustrated.

Phil Foden: 70%

Phil Foden made sure the end was nervy for Aston Villa with an injury-time goal. It was his fifth Premier League goal against Aston Vila, the fourth side he has now hit that milestone against. Foden was Man City’s most dangerous attacking player in terms of shots, with six in total — as many as the rest of his teammates combined. He also contributed to four of their six shots on target.

Jack Grealish: 70%

Jack Grealish tried his best to get the better of his former side, giving Cash a tough match. He created one big chance, completed two take-ons and was fouled once in the final third. Grealish tied McGinn for most penalty area entries and had more touches in the opposition box than any other player (8). But he just couldn’t find the breakthrough

Erling Haaland: 45%

This was another poor game for Erling Haaland. The Norwegian had one shot and one touch in the opposition box, both coming in the 90th minute. He garnered a total non-penalty xG of 0.11 and was practically non-existent with 18 touches in total and just eight passes completed.

How do Squawka player ratings work?

Squawka’s new player rating system is wholly stats-based. Player scores are based on the numbers they put up across a range of on-ball events, from goals scored to tackles won.

We tailored each score to the players’ respective positions using extensive research and expertise. For example, forwards are rated on metrics like shots on target, touches in the opposition box, and big chances created. Meanwhile, centre-backs are rewarded for winning aerial duels, making blocks, successful long-range passes, etc.

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