“I have warned Pep Guardiola about that particular player, he refused to bench him, He keeps causing problems to the team, He cost Manchester City three points and Pep played him full time: Former Man City Player and Argentina international Kun Aguero names ONE player who doesn’t deserve to start for Kan City, warned Guardiola about the unforgivable mistake

Manchester City’s impressive run of 23 consecutive matches without defeat at the Etihad Stadium in Champions League group stage fixtures came to an abrupt end with a comprehensive 2-0 loss to Bayer Leverkusen. The Citizens had the opportunity to virtually guarantee themselves at least a spot in the play-off rounds with a win, but they fell well short of that objective and were clearly outplayed throughout the contest as manager Pep Guardiola’s significant tactical decisions failed to produce the desired results.

The City boss opted to make wholesale alterations to his starting lineup, bringing in 10 fresh faces from the side that lost to Newcastle United. This mass rotation, which saw numerous players returning from extended periods on the sidelines, produced a disjointed team that appeared lacking in rhythm and found it extremely difficult to generate any meaningful attacking opportunities. Defensively, the organization was poor, with the backline caught napping to allow Alejandro Grimaldo to break the deadlock with the opening strike.

Guardiola attempted to rectify the situation by introducing three substitutions at the interval, but this only served to provide Leverkusen with greater confidence, and they subsequently doubled their advantage through Patrik Schick. The later arrivals of Rayan Cherki and star striker Erling Haaland from the bench proved insufficient to spark a comeback, as the hosts failed to find the back of the net. Below are the individual performance assessments from the Manchester Evening News.

Trafford: While he couldn’t be held directly responsible for either of the goals conceded, his overall display lacked the assurance and confidence that was clearly apparent. 5

Khusanov: Demonstrated some quality touches and composure on the ball, but his positioning was questionable for the opening goal and he was an obvious candidate to be withdrawn when the team needed to push for an equalizer. 5

Stones: Clearly the standout performer among the defensive unit, though he wasn’t given the freedom to advance forward and make an impact on proceedings. 6

Ake: Appeared out of rhythm and was culpable in both goals that City shipped, consistently failing to anticipate the danger and stay in position. 4

Ait-Nouri: Found himself out of position at a crucial moment for Leverkusen’s first goal, and his performance was marred by too many miscontrolled touches and wayward distribution. 4

Gonzalez: The sole player retained from the Newcastle match and is probably set to maintain his starting berth for the Leeds fixture considering he turned in a relatively solid shift. 6

Bobb: Made an encouraging start by taking the initiative to Leverkusen during the opening moments, but then faded from the contest and was withdrawn at the break. 4

Lewis: Failed to establish any semblance of control over the midfield battle, making questionable choices in attacking areas while offering insufficient cover for Gonzalez. 5

Reijnders: Came close to scoring with another attempt that could, and arguably should, have found the target, but aside from that didn’t provide adequate support to Gonzalez in midfield. 5

Savinho: Remained on the pitch for the entire duration of the match, though it’s challenging to identify any significant impact he made on the game. 4

Marmoush: Demonstrated greater enthusiasm and energy attempting to rally the supporters than he displayed in his duties as the focal point of the attack, where he was largely ineffective. 4

Substitutes

O’Reilly (replaced Ait-Nouri at half-time) Brought greater defensive stability and increased work rate. 6

Foden (replaced Lewis at half-time) Delivered one quality pass to set up Haaland. 6

Doku (replaced Savinho at half-time) Appeared to be the substitute most capable of creating an opportunity. 6

Cherki (replaced Khusanov after 65 minutes) Compelled the goalkeeper into making a quality stop from a set-piece. 6

Haaland (replaced Marmoush after 65 minutes) Squandered a reasonable opportunity when played through on goal. 5

Unused substitutes: Donnarumma, Bettinelli, Dias, Nunes, Gvardiol, Silva