Phil Foden scored a brace to help Man City produce one of the most comfortable football scores of the weekend in the FA Cup. Phil Foden scored twice and Kevin De Bruyne added a late flourish as the six-time FA Cup winners ruined Bristol City’s unbeaten 12-game run in front of a raucous West Country crowd. As Guardiola mentioned, the scoreline was cruel on the hosts, who fell behind to Foden’s seventh-minute strike but persisted in the game until the last quarter. But, Foden’s deflected strike 16 minutes from time, combined with a superb De Bruyne finish, guaranteed the visitors’ spot in the last eight. De Bruyne returned after missing two games due to sickness and commanded a Manchester City team that made five changes from the previous day’s Premier League victory against Bournemouth.
England midfielder Kalvin Phillips started for the first time since leaving Leeds last summer, with Ederson, Erling Haaland, Ilkay Gundogan, Jack Grealish, and Rodri starting on the bench. Phillips was clearly determined to impress after his injury problems, and he struck the crossbar from 25 yards with only 63 seconds on the clock. In a hectic start, Manuel Akanji’s slip gave Sam Bell a shot chance that was deflected wide, and the visitors took the lead soon after.
Riyad Mahrez played a one-two with De Bruyne, and the Algerian’s cross to the far post was stroked high into the net by Foden, who scored for the second time in as many games. After Mark Sykes collided with Rico Lewis, Bristol City responded with a strong penalty shout. There appeared to be a fair appeal, but referee Andre Marriner was unimpressed, leaving home fans disgruntled in the absence of VAR.
Julian Alvarez miskicked in front of the home goal from Foden’s cross, but Bristol City was acquitting themselves well and getting a fair lot of delight down their left flank. After Tomas Kalas caught De Bruyne in possession, Alex Scott fired straight at Stefan Ortega, and Bell fired over. Manchester City’s threat was also evident as Mahrez saw his shot pushed off the line by Kalas and Ruben Dias tested Max O’Leary with a header.
Mahrez was making his 400th appearance in English football, and Robins manager Nigel Pearson, who signed him from French club Le Havre in 2014, couldn’t resist speaking with him after he went to the ground following a touchline challenge from Cameron Pring. At halftime, Ederson replaced Ortega, and Manchester City took control of the game without testing O’Leary until Alvarez forced him into a stop low to his right. Foden was caught late and retaliated immediately on Sykes, earning him a yellow card and a warning from his boss, Pep Guardiola, to be attentive.
As the game became more even, the temperature rose both on and off the field, and Bristol City fans urged their players to grab the moment. Scott dispossessed Dias, allowing Andreas Weimann to put over a cross that Bell headed just wide. But it was all over when De Bruyne sent a fantastic through ball to Nathan Ake before Alvarez helped it on to Foden, who scored from 20 yards.
“He is dynamic, rhythmic, and has a high work rate. His career was always on the rise. This season, he struggled and was depressed. But he’s back for the greatest part of the season now. His influence has been enormous. Football pays well when you put in the effort that he does,” Man City head coach Pep Guardiola said. “It was quite difficult. Bristol demonstrated their ability. Some players that I didn’t know impressed me. The second half was significantly better. Bristol has incredible fans. We came here to the Carabao Cup five years ago and it was incredible. I recall it vividly.”
“I made a joke with the fourth official and the assistant referee about Premier League players being a protected species,” Bristol City boss Nigel Pearson said. “But I’m being sarcastic. It was a game-changing moment, and I’m upset with the score because I believed the game was closer than that.”
Bristol City will play Cardiff City in the Sky Bet Championship on Saturday at 12.30 p.m. Meanwhile, in the Premier League, Manchester City is hosting Newcastle United.
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