Manchester City were comfortable winners in their Community Shield fixture against Chelsea, lifting their first silverware of the season after a 2-0 victory.
Young Englishman Phil Foden was given a berth in the starting XI, a chance for the youngster to establish his first-team credentials, and he took it well, grabbing an assist.
Here’s a closer look at his performance.
KEY STATS
Goals – 0
Assists – 1
Shots – 1
Shots on target -1
Key Passes – 3
Passing Accuracy – 76%
Dribbles – 2
30-SECOND REPORT
Foden was a menace throughout, thanks to his pace and dribbling ability. He took advantage of some slack Chelsea defending to exploit the space that was on offer, and was good on the ball throughout.
By City standards, his passing was a little below the mark, but he showed composure when it counted, setting up Sergio Aguero for the opener.
GOT RIGHT
Pace – Foden’s ability to run at the defence marked him out as one of the biggest threats for the Chelsea rearguard. The danger his pace posed pushed the Blues back whenever he was on the ball.
Dribbling – Chelsea’s retreat brought his dribbling and close control to the fore, however, as he had space and time on the ball, which he used well.
Phil Foden was 11 years old when Sergio Agüero scored his first Man City goal.
— Scouted Football (@ScoutedFtbl) August 5, 2018
At 18, he just set up Kun's 200th for the club. pic.twitter.com/yb8JEHnXDl
GOT WRONG
For a City midfielder to have a passing accuracy rate of 76 per cent is almost unheard of in the Pep Guardiola era. There was nothing particularly careless – indeed, he pulled off a few brilliant passes as well, but a fair few went astray. He’ll have to improve as a more consistent distributor to merit a regular first-team place.
VERDICT
This was a strong performance from City’s 18-year-old, who has been considered a star in the making for some time. He justified the faith that’s been placed around him over the last year, showing that he can fit in among City’s bigger stars. There’s plenty to improve, but Sunday’s performance showed that he deserves more first-team minutes this season.
RATING: 7/10
