Manchester City defeated Tottenham 1-0 in North London on Wednesday night as Pep Guardiola’s team produced a much better performance to climb up to fourth in the Premier League table.
It’s been a season of relative struggle for City. Fans of other clubs might frown on another top four tilt being called a struggle but for a team who have won the last four Premier League titles, it’s not been great at times.
Jeremy Doku was one player who shone for City against Tottenham. He tormented the Spurs backline constantly and this was a performance that started the ball rolling towards silencing his critics.
City have bounced back in style from their drab defeat against Liverpool. Bournemouth and Newcastle both lost in the race for Champions League football next season, whilst Arsenal and Nottingham Forest played out a goalless draw at the City Ground.
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Shaun Wright-Phillips picks his Manchester City Man of the Match vs Tottenham
Although Tottenham did have some chances during the game, a win was all that mattered in the capital. City were battered by Ange Postecolou’s team at the Etihad Stadium earlier this season and that provided some motivation for this one.
Wright-Phillips was doing analysis for Matchday Live on the Manchester City YouTube channel and he was in no doubt that Abdukodir Khusanov should have been given the nod for the Man of the Match accolade.
He explained: “”For me, he’s my man of the match, he defended very maturely. He looked like one of the more mature players on the pitch for someone who can’t speak a word of English. He’s like the silent assassin. He was superb again today.”
Khusanov has taken a little time to settle at City. However, his last couple of performances have been much improved and there is hope that the Citizens can start to see a bit more from him between now and the end of the season.
Abdukodir Khusanov stats vs Tottenham
When you spend £33.6m on a defender, it’s anticipated that they will make an immediate impact. Khusanov has checked in from Lens and at 20-years-old he has clearly been identified with the future in mind.
Khusanov has showcased some versatility already at City. He was given a pretty torrid time when asked to play right-back against Real Madrid, however, and he looked far more at home as a centre-back against Tottenham.
| Abdukodir Khusanov stats vs Tottenham | Total |
| Minutes | 90 |
| Tackles | 2 |
| Clearances | 4 |
| Passes | 48 |
| Pass Success Ratio | 83.3% |
The player already feels like a nice find for City. With several players being told they can leave City in the summer, it feels like Khusanov could become a first-team regular next season and whatever game time he can get before then is a bonus.
Wright-Phillips was right to praise Khusanov for his latest performance. Helping the Citizens to a clean sheet should do his confidence the world of good and it will be fascinating to see what he can do once he become fully accustomed to the Premier League.
