The inconvenient Invincibles are no more. After their 114 guilty verdicts, Manchester City’s 100 per cent record looked an embarrassment for the Premier League as much as an achievement by Enzo Maresca. As City suffered a different sort of defeat, one which owed less to the shortcomings of their expensive lawyers than to the mistakes of a highly-paid defender and goalkeeper, Unai Emery showed there are ways of halting them even before any potential punishments are applied.
The points deduction here came in the form of the three that instead, and deservedly, went to Emery’s excellent Aston Villa, who harried City to distraction. “Manchester City is the best team in the league until now and one of the best teams in the world,” said Emery. He found flaws in them.
There is a theory that Villa suffered more than most from City’s sudden buying power, with James Milner and Gareth Barry among those tempted to Manchester. But, a decade-and-a-half later, this was about the men Emery bought; all funded and more by summer sales, to comply with financial regulations.
Nicolas Jackson struck twice and proved a relentless menace to the City defence. Ibrahim Mbaye came off the bench to set up his winner. Zion Suzuki made a string of terrific saves. On either flank, Johan Manzambi, who was passed fit, and Alysson, looking reminiscent of Morgan Rogers, brought dynamism and direct dribbling. The fifth newcomer to start, Joao Gomes, was part of a terrier-like midfield.
Emery’s rebuilding process seems to be going quicker than the rebuilding of Villa Park. “We were starting the season so poor,” the Spaniard said. “Today everything we worked [on] was fantastic but there is still work to do.”
The annual autumnal improvement was accelerated with a belated first home league win of the campaign. It became the habitual Villa Park victory against City: it is four in a row now for Emery, with Maresca emulating Pep Guardiola in unwanted fashion.
At the start and the end, the Villa faithful branded the City players “cheating b------s”. Maresca felt his side merited something from the 90 minutes. “I think we deserve more from the game,” the Italian said. “The performance overall was good.”
There was a fairness to this outcome, though, as Villa were rewarded for a colossal effort. City, meanwhile, showed certain frailties. Even as they had kept winning, they had defensive deficiencies, conceding three to Sunderland and two to Ipswich. Nor were they watertight on a distinctly wet day in the Midlands. It cost them.
The opener was a third consecutive Premier League goal City conceded that was attributable to Marc Guehi, whose errors did not deny them victory against Ipswich last week. The January signing miscontrolled the ball, allowing John McGinn to intercept and find Jackson. He rifled a shot into the roof of the net.
Maresca accepted the goals were avoidable. “Absolutely, both,” he said. City’s second was traumatic for Gianluigi Donnarumma as Jackson’s shot squeezed under him. It was made by Mbaye, whose run and cutback was his first contribution since coming on. Emery had conjured a terrific substitution, just when it seemed Maresca, who has made plenty of influential changes this season, had turned the game back City’s way with a double switch at the break.
Off went Rayan Cherki, taken off at half-time for the fourth time already this season, and Guehi, who had also been booked for tugging back Jackson. “I am not worried about Marc at all,” insisted Maresca, citing their cautions as a reason for replacing both.
But Jackson was also a reason for removing Guehi. “He is working fantastic tactically, understanding where we need him,” said Emery. “We need him more running in behind.” Jackson was a willing runner. He now has seven goals this season and is looking a perfect stylistic fit for Villa. A double showed he is a worthy successor to Ollie Watkins, who signed off his Villa career with a match-winning brace against City.
On the day, he outscored even the top scorer. Erling Haaland still got a goal when he headed in Iliman Ndiaye’s cross. The winger deserved the assist; he had been much City’s biggest threat in the first half when he struck the post. The Norwegian struck a ninth consecutive appearance. He almost made it a third straight brace, with Ian Maatsen clearing his 89th-minute header off the line.
Before then, however, City encountered resistance in the form of Villa’s new goalkeeper. Suzuki saved from Ndiaye’s curler and Cherki’s close-range shot. After the break, he tipped Josko Gvardiol’s rising shot on to the bar and then made a point-blank block form the raiding left-back. “Sometimes you have to be more clinical,” rued Maresca as City made it no points from a possible 12 on their last four trips to Villa Park.
“We will try again next season,” Maresca added. Assuming they are back at Villa Park next season, anyway.
