Man City player ratings vs Sporting with four 4/10s amid Erling Haaland nightmare
by Simon Bajkowski · Manchester Evening NewsManchester City were thrashed 4-1 by Sporting as incoming Manchester United head coach Ruben Amorim enjoyed a dream farewell in front of a home crowd.
The night began brilliantly for Pep Guardiola's side, with Phil Foden scoring early on to give the Blues control of the game. Viktor Gyokeres equalised before the break but it was after the interval where City crumbled, conceding two goals in the opening minutes of the second half.
Erling Haaland missed a penalty to get City back into it and they then conceded a second penalty to suffer their heaviest defeat since 2020. Here are how the players rated.
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Ederson: Smart early on to deny Gyokeres but couldn't keep it up with so little protection from his defence. 7
Lewis: Wasteful on the ball in the first half but improved as the game went on and fought hard to try to get City back in it. 6
Simpson-Pusey: A difficult night for the debutant - plenty of positives but a few ropey moments as well. 5
Akanji: Took responsibility for Gyokeres where he could but was also left watching on as Sporting broke through the lines. 5
Gvardiol: An error of Cancelo proportions to compound a misplaced pass by running all the way back and giving a penalty away. 4
Kovacic: It's unfair to compare him to Rodri but the downgrade in that position is visible and the game went by him. 4
Silva: Excellent at crafting but Sporting equalised minutes after he wasted a good chance to score. 5
Foden: Brilliant to score the first goal and again led the team, he just couldn't keep it up and do it on his own. 6
Savinho: Looked very good right up until the final ball, which got more frustrating as the night went on. 5
Nunes: Not as effective as in recent weeks and silly to give the second penalty away. 4
Haaland: Unlucky a few times in the first half but the penalty miss was a real chance to change the game. 4
Substitutes
Gundogan (for Silva, 77) Could do nothing to turn the tide. 6
Doku (for Savinho, 77) Showed energy. 6
De Bruyne (for Kovacic, 83) A positive to be on the pitch. 6
Not used: Ortega, Carson, Ake, Walker, Wilson-Esbrand, O'Reilly, Wright, McAtee