Leyton Orient 1 - 2 Manchester City
City are still fighting on two fronts (just...)
Manchester City survived a major FA Cup fourth-round scare, coming from behind to see off League One side Leyton Orient – despite conceding a stunning opener.
Leyton Orient midfielder Jamie Donley produced one of the FA Cup moments of the season with a sensational 50-yard strike. His audacious effort crashed off the crossbar and ricocheted in off City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega, sending Brisbane Road into a frenzy.
City eventually turned the game around in the second half. They levelled when Rico Lewis’ shot took a huge deflection off new signing Abdoukodir Khusanov, before Kevin De Bruyne slotted home from close range 12 minutes from time.
But it was Donley’s wondergoal that stole the show. The 20-year-old, who has represented both England and Northern Ireland at youth level, spotted Ortega off his line and unleashed an outrageous long-range strike. The ball cannoned off the woodwork and rebounded off the German keeper into the net – instantly drawing comparisons to Ronnie Radford’s legendary goal for Hereford against Newcastle in 1972.
The longer term impact of this match
For a long spell, it looked like the goal could spark a famous FA Cup upset, with Pep Guardiola’s side teetering on the brink of their first cup defeat to lower-league opposition since 2018. The home crowd revelled in the moment, breaking into chants of ‘sacked in the morning’ – but City hit back.
Guardiola eventually called upon his big guns, introducing Phil Foden and De Bruyne to steady the ship, ensuring his side avoided embarrassment and could shift focus to Tuesday’s Champions League showdown with Real Madrid.
Guardiola doesn’t have much time to reflect on this hard-fought victory before preparing his side to face Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe and company at the Etihad Stadium.
There is, however, a major concern over new signing Gonzalez, whose absence would be a significant blow. The Porto arrival looked composed in a defensive midfield role, threading a superb early pass to Savinho. Ilkay Gundogan could have spared City some early struggles had he converted at the back post.
Fellow new signing Vitor Reis failed to last beyond half-time on his City debut, although he won’t be available for European competition anyway.
More pressing is the fitness of Ruben Dias, who was taken off at the break in his first game back from injury. Guardiola will be desperate to have him available against Real Madrid.
More football news from Manchester City and more
Omar Marmoush was lively and forced a brilliant first-half save from Josh Keeley, while Khusanov – part of City’s record-breaking £180m January transfer splurge – had a steadier outing than his eventful debut against Chelsea a fortnight ago.
The Uzbekistan international even got himself on the scoresheet, though he looked to be ducking out of the way of Lewis’ strike when it deflected off him and into the net.
Guardiola will know a far better performance is required if City are to keep their European dream alive beyond this month – and Gonzalez’s fitness could prove crucial.
Comments
Post a Comment