Throughout the season, I always keep my own personal running & ever-shifting ‘score out of 10’ on our players, depending on last performance against Premier League & European opposition and on current / general form.
Here’s my personal opinion-findings at the end of a terrific season for us (posted FAR later than I would have liked, so sorry about that).
(Includes * & ** additional ratings where
players were in really good form as my ratings finished at the end of the
season).
Keepers
With the balance of
some decent & more-assured-looking performances in comparison to the
previous season matched against some
proper erratic & ‘flappy’ moments in his last couple of starts; it’s a ‘not
bad’ 6 for the Chilean back-up keeper.
Ederson: 8.5
Is already making his
mark with most City fans – excellent positioning and VERY brave in addition to
his assured foot work and kicking. Having just signed for us and then extended
his contract to 2025, we could have a new goalkeeping hero at City for many,
many years to come.
Defenders
Danilo: 7
Definitely improved
towards the end of the season whenever asked to cover at left or right-back.
Definitely looks more comfortable on the right, especially in an attacking
wing-back sense where he looks more awkward / has to ‘drag it back’ but not bad
for a ‘back-up’, side-defender. Seems to still be lacking confidence from the
bashing he apparently often got from a lot of Real Madrid fans but Pep will get that back
into him. I think we’ll see an improved
version next season…
Is still defying the
medics & doubters. Would probably have got a higher score had he not had
more time in the treatment room and followed by bit-part, slow re-introductions
to the side. But once in and back up to speed, he was his awesome self again in
the last quarter of the season in particular.
Aymeric Laporte: 6.5
A Winter transfer
window who looked comfortable enough on the ball but who, I think, found the pace & ferocity of the Premier League a little bit of
a shock. Once ‘bedded in’, however, I think we saw more of the player we’d been
monitoring for some time and he was outstanding against Brighton in the last home match of the season.
Benjamin Mendy: 6.5
Not as ‘on fire’ as I
expected him to be at first and following the HUGE reputation that preceded him,
then I could see some signs of what we expected…and then he ‘went in’ unnecessarily during
an early-season home game and got himself injured for most of the season; where
we then had to put up with his various social media shenanigans for a long
time, which do seem popular with most City fans I have to admit. Came back sluggish but, once again, improved
as his fitness came back a little. Looking
forward to seeing more of him next season…
Becoming a stalwart in
many ways. Without often appearing to be ‘top class’, he’s just a very
steady and very good defender. That’s all you can ask for, really. Seems to
have largely got rid of his ‘red mist’ / rash moments and added 5 goals to his
tally this season too. A very good season from the Argentine.
John Stones: 7
‘The Jury is still
out’ would be the best phrase to describe where John sits with a lot of City
fans. Some suggest that a season out on
loan at a decent-level club might do him some good; whereas others even suggest
just ‘getting rid’ in the summer and use the money towards a better
replacement. I’m of the opinion that if we can get most his injury niggles
out of the way next season then a 3rd season under Pep might bring him on a level;
a level where he can remove some of the errors and lapses of concentration we
sometimes see. Still…whenever he managed a few games I don’t think he did too
bad at all in a defence that recorded the least goals conceded in the Premier League last season
and I think a lot of fans also forget just how classy he looked prior to his
injury in November 2017.
Kyle Walker: 8
Was definitely heading
for an 8.5 before a little dip in
form and a couple of injury niggles towards the end of the season (I think there was a
little bit of ‘’England / World Cup watching’’ from both him and his club
manager too, which might also explain some of that in the latter weeks). But in general – and aside from a couple of
lapses that lead to at least 2 goals that I can remember – he has been a fantastic
addition to our team that has helped also to take the sting out of losing ‘our
man Zabba’ from the same position at the end
of the previous season. Very combative almost to the point of overly
aggressive; a decent defender and most certainly a very good, forward-thinking
right wing-back.
Midfielders
Kevin De Bruyne: 9.5 *
Unbelievable season! And, similar to Kyle, if he hadn’t have-had a
couple of quieter games toward the end (although he still managed the assist
for THAT 100-point goal) he was heading for a 9.5 ** at one point. Incredible work-rate, determination, skill, passing and
goal-scoring from both open play and set pieces. Hang on! That’s starting to sound almost like ‘the perfect player’!
At a great age an under one of the best managers in the world, can we squeeze a
10 ** out of him next season?
Fabian Delph: 8
Or should that be
Fabian ‘the Savior’ Delph? We might have been a little jittery when thinking
about his injury record and the fact that he was covering for the
long-term-injured Benjamin Mendy but my GOD; not having him – and having him playing so very well –
would have caused us some problems (and that’s taking nothing away from the
young lad I’ll be coming to later). It speaks volumes that he’ll be taken
Russia with England for the World Cup as someone who is both very competent, to
say the least, as a defensive / central midfielder as well as a left wing-back.
Some of his games were solid 8/10s and, for me, never dropped below a 7 as far
as I can recall. Got a little silly in the F.A. Cup
against a Wigan side who were also ‘dishing
it out’ a bit and we did see a little
injury period towards the end of a very long season. But he has spent nothing
like his usual time in the treatment room and I think we saw an excellent
season from the Yorkshire & England man!
Brahim Diaz: 6
It’s clear to see that
the Spanish, attacking midfielder / forward has talent and isn’t phased at all
about being involved in first team action. We didn’t see much of him but I
suspect he’ll be nurtured & improved even more by Pep and his staff.
Fernandinho: 8.5 *
Like David Silva and a good wine, another one who just gets better and better with age,
does our defensive midfielder from Brazil. And
to think that one of our close-season transfer priorities is a defensive
midfielder! But I can fully understand that thinking; we need to give this 33-year
old fella some breathing time during next season and for us to go with just one
anchor-man when all will be doing their upmost to knock us off our perch next
season wouldn’t be very wise at all. As for the season just gone, Fernandinho
has been consistently very good indeed; has largely removed his silly &
unnecessary challenges that he used to pepper his seasons with and quite-rightly
gained some MotM awards from some quarters and in some games; in a season where
there were so many fine performances from others around him. The sign of a very
good player? He did his job so very well ‘under the radar’; where he quietly
snuffed out attacks and laid the ball forward for the ‘icing & cherry’
moments.
Phil Foden: 6.5
The most used EDS player last
season and like his youthful colleague, Brahim, didn’t look phased at all in
the first team. In fact, this busy midfielder from Stockport does a lot to
find and work with the ball. Having previously shone big time (winning the
player of the tournament) for England in the FIFA Under-17s World Cup, I think we’ll see a lot more of this Manchester City
graduate who has every opportunity to become a fantastic player; learning not
only from the manager and his coaching team but also from the array of talent
he both trains and plays with.
Clearly has talent, showed it at times and contributed 6 goals and 3
assists in his first full season after a horrible injury in 2016 / 17. “Slowly,
slowly” might not be what the player himself, at 28 in October, nor his Manager
would like to hear (the German international played
the least number of minutes compared to his midfield / wing colleagues, with
the exception of the afore mentioned youngsters) but his
progression from knee ligament damage has been well managed and I think he’ll
be another important player for us in next season’s, 4-competition campaign.
Leroy Sane: 8.5
“What a talent” is a phrase I found myself naturally saying so many
times last season and to think that we – Pep included I’m sure – can ‘just
sense’ that he has more gears yet to find is a frightening prospect for the
opposition! The, “still to learn” factor, does creep out very briefly and every
so often but that’s most certainly over-shadowed by not just moments of real
class but real stand-out-game-performances. Long may this fella remain a Blue!
Grew and grew and GREW into the
season as the months ticked by. It was clear for all to see - and was spoken about
by many City fans - in the final third of the season in particular. Brought in,
I tend to think, as more of a central
midfielder in the mold of David Silva; Bernardo got a lot of game time on the
right-wing. Yes, that might be a position he also occupied some of the time at Monaco but what’s
even more amazing for me, is that he did that in a season where most would
consider it to be Raheem Sterling’s best ever Premier League campaign! His bursts of pace, trickery,
passing & crossing as well as his ability to switch his play from by-line
crossing to cutting inside AND having really good shots on goals caused the
oppo all SORTS of problems in the latter weeks of the season! And at just 24 in
August, I think this is another player we’ll see more of next season.
David Silva: 9.5 *
The fact that I’ve
already mentioned him twice in this piece goes some way to say what a wonderful player this hero
of mine is…but only some.
As I’ve already stated, this player is just getting better and better with age
and I’m sure Pep has to take a lot of credit for that continued improvement
also. Any Blue who studies matches and player performances should be able to
tell you how brilliant David is on the ball; what amazing vision he has to
anticipate runs of his colleagues and to pick out incredible passes. His
interplay has to be one of the best in the world! And, most of all I think you’ll find City fans saying also, he just has
this ability to make the whole team ‘tick’! His “official” nickname is “Merlin”,
referring to the magician of course. But I also – and more often do – call him “The Maestro”, for his ability to
somehow conduct the whole team’s tempo. I’ve even heard non-City fans say
similar in praise of our Spanish midfielder and I’ve noticed this season also
how Kevin De Bruyne doesn’t quite hit
the heights when he doesn’t have the 32-year old next to him (they’re a dream
combo for me). I think so highly of the little fella that when asked, in an
e-mail from the club, to vote for my ‘player of the season’, I literally sat in
front of the PC for 5 minutes with my mouse pointer hovering over both David
& Kevin and although I’ve scored them both a 9.5 *
in this piece, I eventually went for Silva over De Bruyne. Why? Well I think
it’s these 4 factors really. 1. Although
Kevin probably got a few more ‘9 out of 10s’ than David, there were times where
he had a few of his old, ‘gone missing’, 6.5/10 games; whereas David rarely
dropped below a 7.5 / 8 out of 10 and got his fair share of 9s too.
David was just slightly more
consistent for me. 2. Kevin looked
slightly off pace without David but I don’t recall the reverse of that. 3. David has ADDED so much to his game
this season – looks fitter than ever and has even improved his shooting /
goal-scoring; the one thing he lacked in previous seasons. 4. He did all of that and remained a thorough professional, as
always; with the serious worry of-having a very premature baby to be
concerned with, which included visits home whenever possible. What a guy!
Raheem Sterling: 8
Well I’ve already said
that I think he has just had his personal, best-ever Premier League season and
no-one could seriously say otherwise; with 23 goals and 12 assists. That, then,
does paint a confusing picture by me slapping “only” and 8/10 next to the fella.
But, as I’ve said, it is a rolling score and without being certain, I think I
recall him tailing off towards the end as he shifted position in the absence of
Sergio Aguero in the latter weeks. However,
I think the score has been tempered a little by his still-annoying habit of not
being able to finish when he has time to think about it in ‘one on ones’ – if
his decision making was as good as his ‘instinct strikes’ we’d be looking at a
winger / forward with the ability to get 35+ per season! Still…an excellent
season from the England international.
Yaya Toure: 5
Didn’t make many
appearances this season (just enough to get an outright winner’s medal) and
looked way behind the pace of this new, vibrant team. Did what was asked of him
with little effort in the latter games; sitting deep and spraying the ball
around with relative ease but, I will
also add, with a touch of class & grace. Nothing special at all this
season from the Ivorian with the limited game-time he had but a player nonetheless
who fully deserved all the credit the club gave him in his farewell game.
Oleksandr Zinchenko: 7.5
In tandem with Fabian,
this attacking midfield / left winger was asked to re-train as an attacking
wing-back as cover also for the injured Benjamin Mendy. And how did the 21-year
old (last December) cope? Well I thought he did remarkably well for the most
part. I think we all felt a little more assured with Fabian ‘in there’ for the
bigger games but as the talented, ‘son of
Kevin De Bruyne’ look-alike added both tackling & positioning to his
game; he really did produce some fine displays. I
hope these rumors of the Ukrainian giving an interview to a Russian magazine a
few weeks before the end of the season about him not liking life in England nor
his colleagues are way, WAY wide of the mark, because this is another youngster
who would be handy to have around next season…
Strikers
Sergio Aguero: 8.5
Doesn’t it say a lot
about the talent of a player where Sergio can miss so many games with injury (and
‘comeback game periods’) that he can still bang in 30 goals in all comps and
get 7 assists? He also seems to have to ride every season with speculation
surrounding him that, “…he’ll be gone before the season starts” and / or,
“…this’ll be his last season for sure”. Yeah, he has the odd off game or
half-game where things just don’t seem to bounce right for him; some even
suggest that the soon-to-be 30-year old
occasionally looks like he struggles to keep pace with the moves that our
younger midfielders & forwards produce. But for me he still has the
incredible ability that most top clubs would LOVE to have and I think he can
still frighten defenses in a City shirt until his contract expires in June
2020. Another crackin’ season from our top scorer.
I’ve heard it said of
our Brazilian striker that he’s not the answer to our striking needs; that he
just doesn’t quite ‘do it’ for some fans. And I do get that to some degree – in
the heated battle the Premier League throws up, where teams also have defenders
built like castle turrets & defensive systems built like ramparts; one look
at the slim frame of the South American can have you asking yourself, “Does he
have what it takes to ‘cut it’ in England?”. Well he has most certainly had his
fair share of fairly serious knocks both last season and in his first half-season
and has bounced back very well each time. And, for me, he’s not just got
amazing ability but an incredible work-rate and desire to chase the ball for
the team…and I also don’t think 17 goals
and 3 assists for a player who played around 1,000 less minutes than Raheem
Sterling is a bad return either. A solid 8/10 for me.
The boss
Pep Guardiola: 9.5 *
More Pepper sir
/ madam? The news that our manager signed a 2-year extension to his remaining
1-year contract was probably the best news of the season; perhaps even
eclipsing the amazing & many records he pushed his team to achieve in 2017
/ 18. Wonderful! If I could first address any minor niggles Guardiola had with his decision making in the season
just gone, it might be his starting line-up in the F.A.
Cup loss to Wigan Athletic. Some
might question his selection against Manyoo
in the 2-3 home defeat ahead of the Champions League clash with Liverpool (I would only perhaps really question his
half-time team talk that may have contributed to the 2nd-half
collapse in that game) and most definitely Pep not learning from last
season’s clash with Jurgen Klopp in the 4-3
away defeat; in how to deal with the way they seem to play against us (not helped, of
course, by very poor refereeing & other official decisions). But that’s
it…unless someone with a more keen / critical eye can think of more? But as
for everything else? Huff…WOW! An
amazing tactician; gets his team so fit & organised and boy does he get the
best out of ALL of his players. And, for me, he gets an ‘extra star’ for the
end of the season, where he continued to motivate his game-weary players after
we’d secured the league to ‘push on’ and achieve so many, record-breaking
statistics!
Just as a little add-on…
The home crowd
7/10
Wasn’t a bad home
atmosphere most of the time (I only attended Premier League games) for a
modern, all-seater stadium. Some games were pretty quiet with the often-usual away fans providing most of
the noise. But I think some of that came from the shear awe of the football we
were watching from the boys in sky blue & white for large parts – I for one
was one of those who just didn’t want to take my eyes off the game-play; rather
than perhaps shout my throat hoarse and flinging my arms around, as I have done
so often and for so long. The trophy & medal-giving ceremony at the penultimate game of the season was quite-simply ruined for a lot of fans, as a few-hundred, YouTube wannabes raided the pitch after the game and took far longer to shift than, apparently, one local radio station suggested at the time.
The City fans in general
6/10
Certainly not in every
case, of course, and perhaps it’s just a lot of City fans that I seemed to bump
into last season…and especially at the ‘end of’ our wonderful campaign. I just found myself being really
quite shocked and very irritated at the over-criticism from some Blues when we
didn’t win or, on occasions, won but only by a fine margin; where we may have struggled
to break the ‘oppo’ down for long periods. It wasn’t from ‘Johnny come lately’
fans either; in most cases it was from fans who had been through thin & thinner over the decades! Of course, expectations are
bound to rise and I too expect, to a certain degree, more from highly-paid,
very skilled players under the tuition of one of the best managers in the
world. But…flippin’ ‘eck did I hear
some crazy, CRAZY over-condemnation
from some Blues! One fella, who I’d never met before, popped into my local one
evening to watch a City away game and he just would NOT stop slagging off Kyle
Walker for some reason; not just for the game we were watching but in general,
as though he was one of the worst defenders on the planet! Annoying to say the least…
The bar near to where I sit in the ground
4.5/10
After a period of
slight improvement in 2016 /17 and early last season, it declined into utter
chaos; with the ever-changing staff looking more & more bewildered and even
frightened to say the very least. If I was to rate the last few months in
particular, I’d have to give it no more than a ‘2’. Bobbins.
In a little, separate piece coming soon, which I WAS
gonna tag onto the end of this Blog-posting but wanted, instead, to ‘get this
one out’ ASAP; my usual (for regular readers at least) ‘empty seats count’ for
last season…
Nice considered season analysis
ReplyDeleteThank you, very much appreciated and thanks for taking the time to read.
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