Manchester City are enjoying a bright finish to the season after a largely underwhelming campaign.
Although the Citizens haven’t managed to mount a solid Premier League title challenge, there are still quite a few positives for fans.
For instance, Manchester City are favourites to win the FA Cup against Crystal Palace, and a number of top talents have broken into the first team.
Nico O’Reilly is one such player, starting the season out in and around the first team and now playing regularly in the Premier League.
Indeed, there has been an exciting update about O’Reilly this week – but some City fans feel it’s a double-edged sword.
Manchester City fans hope Nico O’Reilly doesn’t get benched like Abdukodir Khusanov after POTM win
This week, City confirmed that O’Reilly had won the Player of the Month award for April.
The 20-year-old started every game in all competitions for City, and bagged his first Premier League goal in the 5-2 home win over Crystal Palace.
O’Reilly then scored City’s first goal in their 2-0 triumph at Everton, a result which put Pep Guardiola’s side into the Premier League’s top four.
The academy graduate ended the month with another superb display as City booked their spot in the FA Cup final with a 2-0 win over Nottingham Forest.
So, why the concern from some City fans?
They noted how Abdukodir Khusanov won City’s Player of the Month award for February, but he has since slipped out of the starting XI.
One fan said on X: “He’s going to vanish isn’t he”, while another one wrote: “You have given Pep go ahead to bench him.”
Another supporter said: “I hope he doesn’t vanish now like Khusanov did,” while another wrote: “Time for Pep to bench him forever.”
Another said: “Like Khusanov he will be vanished after be POTM for only 1 bad game against Wolves.”
However, there were plenty of fans who were simply eager to congratulate O’Reilly for picking up the accolade.
“As he was meant to be, congratulations to him man,” one fan wrote on X. “He really balled out last month.”
Another fan said: “Well deserved, Nico. Been cooking all month!”
Ashley Cole’s Nico O’Reilly verdict
O’Reilly is a player with plenty of potential who looks like he could become a star for City over the coming years.
With Man City set to make big changes in the summer, many fans have been tipping O’Reilly to become a key player in years to come.
England coach Ashley Cole recently spoke of how O’Reilly has slotted in “seamlessly” in the City team and is very much trusted by Guardiola.
Cole said on That Peter Crouch Podcast: “Yeah. The other one was, he’s probably more breaking through now at Manchester City, is it Nico O’Reilly?
“I know he’s obviously a younger one, but he’s breaking through in a moment where probably Man City had been a little bit shaky, he’s come on and he’s made an impact in games.”
When asked how much he had seen of O’Reilly, Cole said: “Yeah, a lot… but again, the pathway with England is quite strong and good.
“And we’re looking at multiple players all through the age groups to go ‘who’s next and when are they going to feature for us?’
“And yeah, similar to a Rico where again seamlessly steps into the team and plays with a great maturity, you can trust them.
“Ultimately, Pep trusts him to play week in week out, not week in week out, but gives him the opportunity to play and a platform to play.
“And then now he’s – not cementing his place, of course not, but Pep certainly trusts him and plays him at crucial parts of the game.”
