Man City 3-1 Chelsea player ratings: Khusanov’s blushes spared in nightmare Cityzen debut

January signings Abdukodir Khusanov and Omar Marmoush made their Premier League debuts as a struggling Manchester City hosted Chelsea at the Etihad Stadium this evening.

This was the main headline, as Pep Guardiola opted to include both new signings in the lineup, having hinted at this decision earlier in the week.

It initially seemed like a poor decision with Khusanov at the centre of Chelsea’s breakthrough, Noni Madueke eventually opening the scoring shortly after kick-off, and he also found himself in the referee’s book less than five minutes into the game.

However, the visiting Blues were guilty of not putting a wounded City side out of their misery. This came just days after their disappointing performance in Paris, and Enzo Maresca’s men were ultimately punished as the champions scored three times in a 45-minute span.

Josko Gvardiol, Erling Haaland, and Phil Foden all found the back of the net, ensuring that Khusanov’s first appearance for the Cityzens would not dominate the headlines in Sunday’s papers.

Man City player ratings

Ederson: 71%

It’s difficult to blame him for Chelsea’s opening goal, as he likely didn’t expect Khusanov to play the ball back or for its distance to fall short. However, Ederson did somewhat make up for it with his ‘assist’ for Erling Haaland, marking his fifth assist for Manchester City in the Premier League. This ties him with Paul Robinson for the most assists by any goalkeeper in the competition’s history.

Matheus Nunes: 68%

Once again, starting in an unfamiliar right-back role, Nunes was made to work since the majority of Chelsea’s attacks came down his flank. Nunes, though, played a crucial role in City’s equaliser. He positioned himself on the edge of Chelsea’s defence and applied pressure on Cucurella as he ran toward the goal. Consequently, the ball ended up at Gvardiol’s feet, and he successfully finished the play.

Josko Gvardiol: 64%

“Has a goal in him,” as Gary Neville pointed out on Sky Sports commentary, and he should have levelled the match on two occasions before finally equalising on the stroke of half-time. Gvardiol has more goals than any other defender in the PL this season (5), while he’s Man City’s third top scorer after Haaland (17) and Foden (6).

Abdukodir Khusanov: 42%

The opening five minutes were disastrous for City’s new defender. He inadvertently directed a header straight to Nicolas Jackson, who assisted Noni Madueke for an easy tap-in. This was a clear case of an error resulting in a goal. Shortly after, the 20-year-old committed a foul on Cole Palmer, earning the match’s first yellow card. He would not last the full 90 minutes as John Stones came on for him nine minutes after the break.

Manuel Akanji: 56%

It wasn’t going to be an easy evening for Akanji, who, in addition to focusing on his own game, needed to “babysit” Khusanov on his debut. Despite that challenge, Akanji stayed busy and made four clearances while maintaining an impressive retention rate of 92.5%. His five completed passes into the final third were the most by any City player.

Ilkay Gündogan: 66%

Gündogan created one ‘big chance’ and played a crucial role in the buildup to City’s equaliser. His five passes into the final third matched Akanji’s total, but one unsuccessful touch offset four duels won.

Mateo Kovacic: 66%

Kovacic delivered another consistent performance in the heart of City’s midfield, although it wasn’t without flaws. The former Chelsea player was dribbled past three times but successfully won two tackles and regained possession in the middle third on four occasions. Furthermore, no other City player won more duels, securing a total of six in this game.

Phil Foden: 67%

Came into this game in his best form of the season, and Foden produced a fierce strike that ricocheted off Robert Sánchez’s post. His persistence was rewarded when Haaland played him in, and the England international wasn’t going to waste a one-on-one chance.

Omar Marmoush: 63%

Although Marmoush registered two shots on goal, neither was on target, and he created one chance. However, it was his off-the-ball movement that stood out, especially since we have seldom seen this from City’s other wide players in recent matches. Overall, it was an encouraging debut, demonstrating that he and Haaland can coexist in the same lineup.

Bernardo Silva: 60%

Although he often went unnoticed, Silva was frequently the key player who helped City get back into the game. The underlying statistics do not fully capture his performance, as his clever movement often initiated City’s attacks.

Erling Haaland: 81%

Back to his best? This was definitely the Haaland we’ve come to expect, showcasing an ‘old school’ version of himself. Sanchez, Chelsea’s goalkeeper, rushes out in an attempt to intercept, but he’s far too slow. Haaland notices the mistake after shrugging off Chalobah, and he calmly lifts the ball over Sanchez into the empty net. Until that moment, Haaland had not been significantly impacting the game, but you can’t afford to give him an inch. Chelsea didn’t learn their lesson as another long ball played to him was successfully teed into the path of Foden.

Chelsea player ratings

Robert Sánchez: 36%

You have to question Robert Sánchez’s mindset leading up to Haaland’s go-ahead goal. For some reason, he thought it was necessary to leave his goal line, allowing the Norwegian striker to curl a long-range shot into an empty net. No player has made more errors leading to goals than Sanchez (5) in the Premier League this season

Marc Cucurella: 51%

He started the match strongly, as shown by his willingness to move forward and provide Chelsea with an attacking option from the wing. However, he was caught out of position during City’s first goal and his performance declined as the game progressed, leading to a reduced impact on the match.

Levi Colwill: 44%

He found himself go into the referee’s book for time-wasting, as Chelsea often attempted to slow down the game when awarded a goal kick. Colwill was also ineffective in holding off Haaland, as the Norwegian marksman cleverly played the ball into an onrushing Foden, who did the rest and made it 3-1.

Trevoh Chalobah: 53%

Back in the fold and seemed comfortable until City shifted to a direct approach. He was overpowered by Haaland leading up to the goal, and his goalkeeper didn’t help by being out of position.

Reece James: 55%

The Chelsea skipper looked more like himself in the second half, but he was taken off less than 30 minutes after the break. Maresca may have made the substitution due to James being positioned in the area where City had caused most of their damage.

Enzo Fernández: 58%

Enzo Fernandez had a mixed performance. He completed three successful take-ons but was also dribbled past on four occasions. Despite this, he stood out in Chelsea’s midfield, completing the most passes into the final third (five) and winning possession in the middle third (four times). However, three ineffective touches and Man City easily bypassing him ultimately contributed to his overall rating.

Moisés Caicedo: 55%

This was a typical feisty performance from Chelsea’s midfield enforcer, but Caicedo was caught out and received a yellow card from John Brooks for a tactical foul. It didn’t help that he was dribbled past on two occasions, which only happened after the Blues relinquished their midfield superiority.

Jadon Sancho: 55%

Capped off a 73-minute appearance by creating one goalscoring opportunity, although it would not be classified as a ‘big chance.’ His only attempt on goal, which was not on target, produced an expected goals (xG) score of 0.19. Overall, he flattered to deceive against his former club.

Cole Palmer: 62%

Palmer’s moment came soon after Chelsea took the lead when he found himself racing toward City’s goal. Instead of attempting a shot on Ederson, he opted to pass the ball to a teammate, but the attack ultimately lost momentum. After that, he appeared to be mostly invisible, finishing the game with just one shot on goal and one chance created.

Noni Madueke: 70%

He is quietly enjoying a productive season, and Madueke’s early breakthrough goal was his second in consecutive matches, something he has only done once before (in December 2023). As Neville pointed out during the commentary, he was the only Chelsea player who seemed capable of making a difference once City took control of the match.

Nicolas Jackson: 65%

Ever the opportunist, Jackson was alert when Khusanov’s misguided headed pass back was too short for Ederson, meaning the much-maligned Chelsea striker could play a simple ball for Madueke to convert from just a few yards. He exited the game just after the hour mark with two attempts on goal, both on target, but extending his goalless run to seven matches. His longest in a Chelsea jersey.

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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