A disjointed City side got the job done to put pressure on Liverpool but the midfielder is unsure as to who scored the second goal
Kevin De Bruyne admits he has no idea who should be credited with Manchester City‘s second goal against Aston Villa on Saturday, the Belgian conceding that David Silva may have got the final touch to an inswinging ball that initially looked to have sneaked past everyone in the box.
City were made to work hard for their 3-0 victory, with the Villans matching their hosts for intensity throughout the first 45 minutes. They started the second half with a bang, however, with Raheem Sterling finding the net with less than a minute played.
Ilkay Gundogan put the match to bed with a third later on, but the second goal was a point of contention as VAR checked to see if David Silva and Raheem Sterling were offside or interfering with goalkeeper Tom Heaton as De Bruyne’s curled ball came in from the left.
The goal stood, but there was still plenty of debate as to who the goal should be awarded to – even after several viewings of the VAR recording. Asked if he would claim the goal, De Bruyne told BT Sport: “No, I don’t think so, David said he touched it so I have no idea!”
Who gets credit for the goal will matter little to a side renowned for their intricate team moves, but De Bruyne admitted that City were far from their slick best as Villa gave a good account of themselves on the day.
“I think we had some difficulties today coming out, maybe a little bit of a lack of intensity, the rhythm wasn’t really there,” the midfielder added.
“But even then, in the first half we had a couple of chances to go in front. The second half started really well with Raz’s [Sterling] goal and then after that we had a good performance.
“In the first half they had a couple of counter-attacks and we didn’t cope with that well at times, but that’s going to happen. We played on Tuesday, they had all week [to prepare] so sometimes they’re a little bit fresher.
“I think in the end we deserved to win. We’re just doing our job. It’s such a long competition. We’ve done really well after the international break, won three in a row, so let’s keep it going.”
Fernandinho, who has been deputising at centre-back as City struggle with injuries, was given his marching orders late in the game after picking up a second yellow card.
De Bruyne, though, called for calm when it was suggested that the Etihad outfit might be facing a crisis.
“You guys say the same thing whatever happens or whoever gets injured!” he said. “It’s part of the game, obviously, we have a lot of injuries but I think we’re coping with it really well. It’s not nice because you want everybody to be there but it is what it is.”
Be the first to comment