Pundits also ask: 'What do you do with Yaya Toure?'
Thursday 11 December 2014 00:17, UK
Manchester City have finally delivered a standout winning performance on the European stage, says Jamie Carragher.
It was a proper European performance that we’ve been looking for from City not just this year, but in years gone by. It doesn’t mean they played free-flowing football or they were fantastic on the eye – they weren’t.
A 2-0 victory away at Roma after Samir Nasri and Pablo Zabaleta's goals, coupled with CSKA Moscow’s defeat to Bayern Munich, was enough for City to qualify for the Champions League knockout stages.
A patient performance – despite Vincent Kompany, Sergio Aguero and Yaya Toure's absence – was built upon by Joe Hart’s goalkeeping and a defensive-minded midfield meaning City may finally understand what it takes to succeed in this competition, according to Carragher.
He said: "It was a proper European performance that we’ve been looking for from City not just this year, but in years gone by. It doesn’t mean they played free-flowing football or they were fantastic on the eye – they weren’t.
"After the first 15 minutes they came through the scares and grew into the game. At times it wasn’t pretty to watch and it wasn’t great football. But they made it difficult for Roma and grew into the game. It comes off the back of a lot of big players missing, like Kompany and Aguero.
"Fernando and Fernandinho, in the midfield, did a proper job of shielding the defence and they’re the reason why they got their first clean sheet in a group game. Nasri said that Pellegrini said before the game, 'the game is 95 minutes, you don’t have to win it in the first 15 minutes'.
"You're going to need your goalkeeper in tough European away games. That's the first clean sheet they've kept in the group stage and a lot of that comes from the two central midfield players protecting the back four because they needed protecting.
"Eliaquim Mangala will struggle and Martin Demichelis has shown us in the last 18 months what he's about with his experienced head but if he gets exposed he needs help as well.
"Without Kompany there they had a proper set-up, away from home, without Yaya Toure. Now the big decision for them is in the next round – he's suspended in the opening game but after that if they go on – what do you do with Yaya Toure?"
Unsung
Graeme Souness, a fellow Sky Sports expert, agreed that replacing their trademark flair with gritty solidity is exactly how City must approach high-profile European encounters.
He said: "Fernando and Fernandinho will go unsung, but it was a really solid European performance. They needed to show teams a bit more respect and be a bit more cautious. City did it right tonight. Joe Hart has made two saves at 0-0 which kept them in the game. If Roma had gone ahead tonight, they would’ve found the extra energy from the crowd.
"It was a very different Man City tonight. It was forced on them and they may have learned from that. Fernando and Fernandinho, what did they do creatively? I can't remember any clever passes. But what they did do – they were on Roma, making them make passes they didn't want to make. You need that – at the highest level you need that."
The Premier League champions will find out their last-16 opponents on Monday morning in a draw you can see live on Sky Sports News HQ.
