Manchester City have gone two points clear at the top of the Premier League table after a 1-0 win over Southampton.
Fresh from thumping Sparta Prague in the Champions League in midweek, Manchester City were back at the Etihad Stadium to face a Southampton side who have yet to win.
Many anticipated a real hammering for the visitors.
But in the end, City won 1-0 thanks to an early Erling Haaland goal.
Russell Martin’s side gave a good account of themselves, but ultimately just didn’t have the quality to breach City, who got their first clean sheet in the league since the opening game against Chelsea.
One man who really played his part in that clean sheet was Ruben Dias.
Jack Grealish sends message to Ruben Dias after solid display in Southampton win
Dias did not start against Sparta in midweek, but came on in the second-half of that game.
He was therefore always likely to come back info this game against Southampton after being rotated.
And it was simply a solid performance at the back from the Portuguese star. As per Sofascore, Dias was practically perfect with his passing, completing 90/93 (97%).
Dias made a combined four tackles and clearances (two of each), and even had a shot on target.
Dias posted on Instagram after yesterday’s game, writing ‘Last game at home for a while… hope you enjoy it! 3 points and a clean sheet. Let’s go Citeh!’
Fans flocked to praise Dias for his display, and Jack Grealish was also left impressed. No words were even needed for the England winger, who simply left the clapping and ‘top’ emojis.
After the game, former City defender Andy Morrison praised Dias for his focus and attention against Southampton.
Dias has quietly had a great start to 2024/25
It was great to see City keeping a clean sheet in the Premier League again after several weeks without one.
We know that currently, City are not in full flow, so it is going to be vital to stay solid at the back in order to give the attacking players something to build off.
So far this term, £65 million star Dias has been quietly very impressive for City, despite the general lack of clean sheets.
| Ruben Dias so far in 2024/25 |
| Appearances (starts) – 8 (7) |
| Minutes played – 637 |
| Pass completion rate – 93.4% |
| Percentage of dribblers tackled – 66.7% |
| Aerial duels – 73.7% |
Up to now, he has a pass competition rate of 93.4% across his eight appearances in all competitions, which is simply fantastic, and something that will undoubtedly please his manager.
He also has a 66.7% percentage of dribblers tackled metric, and a very impressive aerial duels win rate of 73.7%. Furthermore, Dias has recovered 25 balls so far, giving an average of 3.1 per game.
Pep Guardiola needs Dias to continue this fine form, with some tricky tests coming up in November.
