Manchester City defender Nathan Ake proved his worth to Pep Guardiola in his latest Premier League appearance for the club.
After being an unused substitute last weekend for City’s 3-0 win over Manchester United, which saw Josko Gvardiol play in the left-back position, the Dutchman was back in the team to take on his old club this afternoon.
Having helped his side secure all three points with a 6-1 scoreline against the Cherries, who the defender joined City from in a deal worth £41m back in the 2020 summer transfer window, Ake managed to show his manager why he should be in the team.
Ake impresses against Bournemouth
With the full 90 minutes under his belt, the 28-year-old had 79 touches of the ball in total, successfully completing 60 of the 64 passes he attempted, leaving him with a passing accuracy percentage of 94%.
Having made two key passes and accurately completing the three long-ball passes he attempted, the defender showed how comfortable he is in possession and moving the ball around the pitch.
Ake also showed how useful he can be in front of both goals as not only did he make more clearances (4) than any other City player, but he also scored their final goal of the game to put the nail in the coffin for his previous club on what was ultimately a disheartening day for them.
This performance earned the Dutchman an overall match rating of 7.9/10 from SofaScore, making him the highest-rated City defender on the day.
The Manchester Evening News also picked up on Ake’s efforts against his old side by highlighting in their player ratings article the way he passed the ball up the pitch, ultimately giving him a match rating of 7/10.
With all of that in mind, we feel that Ake may have given Guardiola a big headache over who he has to pick to start at left-back moving forward.
