Manchester City were held to a 1-1 draw by the newly promoted Wolverhampton Wanderers in a pulsating contest that saw both clubs fight for all three points till the very end.
Following a tense and exciting first half, Wolves drew first blood as defender Willy Boly found the back of the net in the 57th minute. Although TV replays later revealed that the defender had handled the ball before it found the net and was offside at the same time, Manchester City were quick to respond, thanks to Aymeric Laporte’s bullet header.
The former Athletic Bilbao starlet capitalized on a delicious cross from Ilkay Gundogan to fire home the equalizer. But the defending champions failed to break the shackles of a highly resolute Wolves defence and eventually dropped two valuable points.
In this article, we will discuss three reasons why the Sky Blues were held to a 1:1 draw by Nuno Espirito Santo’s men yesterday afternoon.
Lack of support in midfield for Fernandinho
It was perhaps one of those times when Fernandinho needed an extra bit of defensive support in midfield. With both of his midfield partners in Ilkay Gundogan and David Silva fully focused on providing the creative spark in the final third, Wolves found it easy to plummet City’s holding midfield position by deploying the duo of Diogo Jota and Helder Costa in a slightly central role.
As a result, the newly promoted outfit had a numerical advantage in that particular area with Fernandinho being limited to marking only one player. This, in turn, helped Nuno Espirito Santo’s men to become much more fluid in their leadup to their attacking moments, ultimately causing all sorts of problems for the City defence.
Thus, it is certainly evident that Pep Guardiola desperately needs a new midfielder, who can not only prove to be a replacement for Fernandinho but also eclipse the Brazilian as far as the overall gameplay is concerned.
Solid co-ordination from Wolverhampton
Rather than blaming a near perfect Manchester City side and their squad dynamics, we should probably acknowledge the fact that the Wolves’ preparation and execution were simply too good and thus, deserved the point.
While the defensive trio of Ryan Bennett, Conor Coady and Willy Boly remained solid throughout the course of the game, the midfielders Joao Moutinho and Ruben Neves also put in a great shift in midfield to prevent the likes of David Silva and Ilkay Gundogan from getting a grip on the game.
But most importantly, it was the attackers who often kept the Man City fullbacks busy in order to minimize their attacking influence in the final third. The duo of Helder Costa and Diogo Jota, in particular, were clinical and energetic and engaged Kyle Walker and Benjamin Mendy, both of whom were largely restricted to their defensive work.
This excellent co-ordination along with understanding from the Wolverhampton team was definitely one of the key reasons behind their success against the mighty Sky Blues this afternoon.
Lackadaisical refereeing – Is it finally time to introduce VAR?
Despite all the excitement and drama which transpired in this highly fascinating encounter, the focal point of the game was Willy Boly’s goal. As iterated earlier, the Wolves defender handled the ball before putting it in the back of the net and thus, his goal should have been ruled out.
The goal left Manchester City in a fix to quickly find an equalizer, which, in turn, caused them to lose their shape. But, it wasn’t the end of the story as referee Martin Atkinson also denied a penalty to Manchester City when David Silva was clearly fouled inside the box.
The Spaniard looked likely to have taken down by Ruben Neves but the controversial decision from referee Atkinson should definitely raise discussion over the lack of implementation of the VAR technology in the Premier League. The innovation was already a success in the 2018 FIFA World Cup earlier this summer and implementing it could go a long way in perfecting the beautiful game in nigh future.