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Man City win uncovers new De Bruyne, Man Utd’s next CB and Arsenal’s marquee left winger
Man City win uncovers new De Bruyne, Man Utd’s next CB and Arsenal’s marquee left winger

The goalkeeping enigma that is Gianluigi Donnarumma was at his perplexing best. Less than a minute after making a truly stunning fingertip save to deny Christoph Baumgartner to keep Manchester City ahead he was leaving a yawning gap at his front post to make what should have been an impossible angle for Ridle Baku to score from near the byline eminently achievable.

It was so tempting that none of us were left in any doubt that the RB Leipzig right-back meant to pass the ball in at the near post from a position that on almost all occasions you would insist upon it being a case of good fortune from a mishit cross.

Donnarumma has had that look of befuddlement on his face far too frequently this season to not raise doubts over his place in the team, albeit after top quality understudy James Trafford was sold and replaced by veteran Geronimo Rulli.

City had taken the lead against the run of play in the first half thanks to a glorious own goal from Manchester United-linked Castello Lukeba, who inexplicably slid in to divert Nico O’Reilly’s cross past his own goalkeeper.

“I don’t know what he’s doing,” laughed Owen Hargreaves in the TNT Sports studio after commentator Adam Summerton had trailed the 23-year-old’s imminent move to Old Trafford by revealing “he’s never quite kicked on or developed as they thought he might” following his £25m move from Lyon.

Lukeba was again culpable as City retook the lead, giving the ball away as he passed out from the back before Iliman Ndiaye produced a brilliant cross from the left wing for Enzo Fernandez to score the Enzo Fernandez goal after a perfectly-timed run into the box.

Antonio Nusa won’t be at RB Leizig for long. Christopher Nkunku – who came off the bench to provide a beautifully delicate assist for the 21-year-old – offers a very real warning over the dangers of a move to the Premier League. That’s more a Chelsea thing than a sweeping generalisation though.

Nusa was superb throughout, running at quite extraordinary speed with the ball at his feet and turning away from challenges with superb balance and no little strength, he looks ideally suited for the English top flight. His finish was devastating too – a perfect touch and smashed finish into the bottom corner with his supposedly weaker left foot.

He’s already got six goals and seven assists in 14 games this season and after making £100m through the sale of Yan Diomande in the summer, the Bundesliga giants will be hoping to make a not dissimilar profit on the Norway international in the not-too-distant future. Arsenal need a left winger.

Hargreaves hailed him as “the standout player on the pitch” with Rayan Cherki, Phil Foden, Enzo Fernandez and Erling Haaland.

The standout forward maybe, but Elliot Anderson was streets ahead of everyone else once again, and topped off his near-perfect all-round display with the assist of the season.

After taking the ball in his stride at full pelt following a one-two just inside the Leipzig half, he drove into the box after shrugging off a challenge and slipped an early cross between goalkeeper and defenders through the Kevin De Bruyne corridor of uncertainty for Haaland to slide the ball into the net with what was the striker’s 13th touch of the ball in the 79th minute.

At no point did it feel like Manchester City were in control of this game, nor does it feel particularly fair that they came away from it with three points. And yet they had 65% possession and an xG of 2.23 to Leipzig’s 0.87. That’s a pretty convincing unconvincing victory.

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