Manchester City: Man-for-man marking

Jack Pitt-Brooke
Thursday 23 February 2012 01:00 GMT
Comments

Joe Hart

Busier than he might have hoped, but made required saves without fuss, including a great low one in added time. 7/10

Micah Richards

Not as cavalier as City fans are used to: he was largely pinned back. Hurt in the second half but stayed on. 5

Vincent Kompany

Harassed by Porto's lively attacking players, but generally stayed in command of his penalty area and beyond. 7

Joleon Lescott

A harder evening than most of his at the Etihad Stadium: sometimes dragged out of position by Hulk. 6

Gaël Clichy

Tried to provide attacking width but found it difficult. Did not always get tight enough to Porto's wingers, but soon learnt his lesson. 5

Samir Nasri

Drifting in from the right, he was tidy and combative when involved. Sacrificed for Edin Dzeko on 70 minutes: City scored three more. 6

Nigel de Jong

Still not looking fully sharp. Lucho Gonzalez was too sharp for him as Porto moved the ball freely 5

Gareth Barry

At times overwhelmed by Porto's attacks in numbers. Limped off early in the second half. 5

David Silva

Played some characteristically perfect passes, and dipped past his full-back at will. A simple finish for City's third goal of the night. 8

Yaya Touré

City had missed that physical midfield presence. He made the first goal before moving back. 7

Sergio Aguero

Brilliant front-running; making Carlos Tevez's apology look redundant. His goal, within 20 seconds, was brilliant, as were his chip, his assist and much more. 9

Best off the bench

Edin Dzeko (for Nasri, 69): Scored the second goal, and was involved in the last two as well. 8

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in