Manchester City fans stood in stunned silence on Wednesday night after watching their side fall 3-0 behind to PSG at half-time. Usually a home crowd greets that scoreline with boos, but the City supporters had no such reaction. They had seen their team dismantled.
City were not at their best, but PSG were ruthless. Desire Doue, Ousmane Dembele and Vitinha carved through City with their goals, and the battle was being lost in the middle of the park. Warren Zaire-Emery, still only 20, played like a pitbull in the centre of the pitch.
Each time PSG advanced in numbers, Elliot Anderson and Enzo Fernandez were left behind. Both had impressed at Liverpool, but they were overrun by PSG’s midfield three, and that created serious problems for City in defence. The back four looked all at sea and were exposed by the strength of PSG’s attack.
According to FotMob, PSG took ten shots in the first half, seven of them on target. City managed six, with just one on target. After Vitinha scored PSG’s third, the City players gathered in the middle of the pitch to discuss what had gone wrong. The change at half-time from Enzo Maresca, however, gave City hope of a comeback.
A smart change at the break
Maresca turned to his bench and introduced Matheus Nunes, Iliman Ndiaye and, most importantly, Ayyoub Bouaddi. Given the hype surrounding the teenager, Maresca has used him sparingly. That decision says more about the depth of City’s squad than about how Bouaddi has settled in England.
Bouaddi came on in place of Rayan Cherki, and City immediately became more compact. PSG had no answer. Despite playing only 45 minutes, Bouaddi produced ten line-breaking passes. Only Marc Guehi and Anderson made more, according to FotMob.
In the first half, PSG dominated nearly every key statistic, including xG, total shots, shots on target and accurate passes. After the break, City took control of those numbers. Their most striking improvement came in accurate passing. City completed 43 more passes in the second half, while PSG’s tally fell from 241 to just 134.
Bouaddi played a big part in that shift. He covered a great deal of ground, particularly in the attacking midfield areas. He completed 37 of his 40 passes and finished the game with an assist, setting up the second of Erling Haaland’s goals. This was a performance of the highest quality, and it is especially encouraging for City that he is only 19. It is hard to imagine how good he could become in a couple of years.
A tactical solution
Maresca will not have been jumping for joy when he reviewed the game on Thursday. City still lost, and the first half did not match the Italian’s view that his side are close to PSG’s level.
Even so, City appear to have found a solution to a major problem. Cherki showed on Sunday against Liverpool how dangerous he can be when given space to operate. He dictated attacks and had the freedom to roam into whichever position he chose.
Against a side like PSG, who look to flood the centre of the pitch, he is less effective. Playing Bouaddi, Anderson and Fernandez as a midfield three counters that approach. They provided better balance in the middle of the pitch and filled the gaps PSG had exploited in the first half.
In big games where City cannot expect to have everything their own way, picking Bouaddi to offer extra protection in midfield could be the way forward. If City can produce more performances like that second-half display, they will be well placed for silverware this season.