Marcus Rashford scored at the Etihad to continue his fine form against Manchester City but ultimately could not help Aston Villa avoid defeat in a crucial match for Champions League qualification next season.
Unai Emery opted to start Rashford, 27, up front as the Spanish manager continued to back the Manchester United loanee over English teammate Ollie Watkins, despite Villa’s number nine expressing his frustration at being left out from the side last weekend.
However, it was immediately proved an astute decision as Rashford latched onto a good pass by Youri Tielemans after just 17 seconds to turn Ruben Dias inside out, before sending a left-footed shot past Stefan Ortega towards the City goal, only for it to strike the post.
Pep Guardiola’s side wasted no time in responding with Bernardo Silva turning home a deflected cross to put the Citizens 1-0 up in the 7th minute. But Villa retaliated just ten minutes later, courtesy of the intervention of VAR, as Jacob Ramsey was judged to have been fouled by Dias in the City box and a penalty was awarded.
The move which led to Ramsey receiving the ball was driven by incisive play by Rashford down the left-hand side, with the 27-year-old forward finding great joy throughout the game by drifting away from the middle towards the wings.
Rashford duly stepped up in the absence of regular penalty-taker Watkins and coolly slot the ball past Ortega’s left to score his fourth goal for Villa since making the switch from Old Trafford in the January transfer window.
Interestingly, all four of these goals have come away from Villa Park with Rashford yet to find the net for his adopted side at home. But he has also produced six assists for the Birmingham side, underscoring the versatility as an attacker which led Emery to implore his club to target the United academy graduate in the first place.
It was also the fourth goal Rashford has scored at the Etihad with a total of six strikes in his career against City. The Mancunian forward has only scored more against one other opponent, Leicester City, proving the battle lines run hard for the local boy.
Rashford was a constant menace to Guardiola’s side in the first half with his blistering pace in behind a constant thorn in their backline, particularly for Dias.
The second half was a quieter affair for the 27-year-old, though he did come close to scoring after running across Dias and dancing around Ortega, only to be forced too far wide with the angle proving impossible to find the back of the net from.
Rashford was withdrawn in the 75th minute for Watkins. In commentary for Sky Sports, Gary Neville described the United loanee as a “real threat” who could “easily have had three or four on a different night”.
The City defence were likely to be relieved to see the forward depart and the Citizens grew into the game more after this point. And this change in momentum ultimately proved the downfall for Villa as Matheus Nunes produced a last-minute winner to gift City a vital 2-1 win and lift them to third in the Premier League table, while the Villains fell to 7th.
Emery could easily have brought Watkins on up front while shifting Rashford out to the left in order to ramp up the pressure on a beleaguered City defence. Instead, the Spaniard, as has often been the case in his career, opted for the more defensive choice, and it backfired.
Rashford finished the match with a goal, one effort against the woodwork, six out of seven successful passes, one key pass and one cross (Sofa Score). But it was the sense of panic he produced in the City defence which was his most impactful contribution; and one which his manager failed to capitalise upon.
Featured image Warren Little via Getty Images
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Darragh Fox Darragh is a writer for The Peoples Person who spent three years as a history graduate slowly realising football was by far the most interesting thing to write about.
