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Manchester City have established themselves as the best team in England for most of the last decade, and they're not slowing down. Since the takeover by Sheikh Mansour, Manchester United's "noisy neighbors" have rapidly gone from enthusiastic wannabes to rulers of English football.
The great success that the infusion of wealth and drive has brought to the club cannot be understated. City have surpassed their more illustrious neighbors in every discernible metric since oil wealth started funding their growth. They also look set to carry on dominating the footballing landscape for the foreseeable future.
Despite their domestic domination and expensively assembled squad, Manchester City have also fallen prey to the skills of other players not in their employment. The quality of City’s team means that players who are able to hurt them outside their team are few and far between. However, they are out there.
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Legends like Ian Rush, Sir Kenny Dalglish and Alan Shearer tormented City in their time, but the Cityzens weren't one of the biggest clubs in Europe at the time. So the names on this list are culled from players who have faced City in more recent history.
These players have consistently made statements against the riches of the Cityzens. So, without further ado, here is our list of the top 5 players who have tormented Manchester City over the years:
#5 Son Heung-min | Tottenham Hotspur
Perhaps an unlikely player to make the list, Son Heung-min has had consistently brilliant displays against Manchester City. Southampton are the only EPL club that Son has scored more goals against. While City's formidable defense has kept Tottenham Hotspur at bay over the years, it has been tough to keep the South Korean international quiet.
In the EPL, Son has managed four goals and one assist in eleven games against the English champions. His UCL record against City, however, is what really lights up his ability to torment the side. Three goals in just two games saw Tottenham knock Manchester City out of the Champions League quarter-finals in 2019
#4 Sadio Mane | Liverpool
Every time Sadio Mane has clashed with Manchester City in the Champions League, the Senegalese international has been victorious. Two wins in two games hardly bodes well for City against Liverpool in the UCL, and the Cityzens will be wary of meeting with the Reds in that competition.
City have had more luck in the Premier League, where Liverpool have only won four games out of 15 against the Cityzens with Mane on the pitch.
Although City have managed to win close to half (7) of those 15 games, they haven't found the antidote to stop Mane's goalscoring prowess. The star has managed six goals and two assists in 15 EPL games against City, with the most recent goal coming just a few months ago.
While the star was at Southampton, he managed a stunning hat-trick against City in 2016.
#3 Lionel Messi | PSG
Although the Argentine maestro has faced City as a PSG player, it is his clinical goalscoring while at Barcelona that tormented the Cityzens. Thanks to Messi's efforts, Manchester City have been kicked out of the UCL for two consecutive years. In more recent years, they've faced off in the group stages instead, but Messi continued to show sublime prowess against City's usually unshaken defense.
Now at PSG, the Argentine star already has one goal to his name against City, having scored during their 2-0 win over the Cityzens last year. In total, Messi has played eight games against City, scoring seven goals and providing three assists. It's quite stunning that Messi has had a strong record against City, having beaten them six times in those eight games.
#2 Mohamed Salah | Liverpool
Yet another Reds player to make this list, Mohamed Salah's goalscoring form, has been a major source of concern for Manchester City. Although Liverpool have only beat City six times in 13 games when Salah was playing, his eye for goal has found the Cityzens conceding more often than not.
City will be glad to have a come out on top more often than not against Salah and the Reds in the FA Cup and Community Shield.
His EPL record against City, however, is much more of a threat. Five goals and two assists in just nine games has seen the star become one of City's deadliest tormentors in front of goal.
The Champions League has been even worse for City, with Salah scoring twice and assisting once in just two games. The Cityzens will want to forget their 3-0 beating at the hands of the Reds in 2018 when Salah scored and assisted a goal each.
#1 Jamie Vardy | Leicester City
The top spot on this list might have gone to Wayne Rooney, purely because the current Derby manager scored 12 goals against City throughout his career. However, it took him 31 games to make that happen.
Jamie Vardy, however, has scored nine goals, but in only 18 games against City. Although Leicester have often lost to the Cityzens, Vardy has been the proverbial pain in the neck for Guardiola's men.
In just 10 EPL games against City, Vardy has scored eight goals and assisted three. His only other goal against the club came during a League Cup quarter-final clash in 2017-18 when Leicester lost on penalties.
Vardy has also scored two hat-tricks against the Cityzens. Only two other clubs (Liverpool and Arsenal) have had to deal with more goals from the Foxes' marksman.
