Huddersfield Town put in a fantastic performance to force Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City into a replay at the Etihad stadium in the fifth round of the FA Cup on a bright and sunny day in the town of Huddersfield in West Yorkshire.
Both teams would certainly be disappointed with the fixture congestion going into the business end of the season, however, both teams were equally deserving of the draw. It seemed like Huddersfield started off the game in top gear and were perhaps the better team in the first half while Manchester City came right back into the game in the second half.
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Some gritty defending from the Terriers saw City struggle to break through their defence. Even the introductions of Leroy Sane and Kevin De Bruyne seemed to have no effect as Huddersfield held on for a 0-0 draw at the John Smith’s stadium. Here are five talking points from the game:
#1 Claudio Bravo finally has a good game
Manchester City’s most controversial transfer in a while – Claudio Bravo was finally given a start after being dropped by manager Pep Guardiola. After coming in from Barcelona this summer to replace out of favour goalkeeper Joe Hart, Bravo has had a disastrous time in the Premier League with one of the worst goalkeeping records this campaign.
While his shot stopping was poor, his distribution was also below par and Willy Caballero was rightly given a chance to replace the Chilean. On his return today, Bravo was fantastic on the ball and looked as confident as he did during his Barcelona days.
While he wasn’t troubled too much, he did have a few shots at him and did very well to keep out any danger. He seemed very confident and comfortable in goal for Manchester City and seemed very different from the clumsy and nervous player he was only a few months ago. '
#2 Huddersfield are a team to look out for
With 61 points from their 31 games this season, Huddersfield are currently third in the Championship with 15 games to go. Newcastle United and Brighton & Hove Albion occupy the first and second spots, respectively. Huddersfield are, hence, only four points away from an automatic promotion spot and could very well make it there.
With five wins from their last five games, Huddersfield are on a dream run and could finally make it to the Premier League for the first time in their history. Today’s performance was assuring if anything for the West Yorkshire team who will be having an eye on rivals Leeds United, who are currently placed 5th.
Huddersfield executed their plans perfectly and did not allow Manchester City any space to play it their way. While attacking they certainly seemed to have enough skill to possibly survive in the Premier League. However, they seemed a tad bit nervous on several occasions. Perhaps they could be the team to watch out for next season in the English top flight.
#3 Poor final balls define the game
Both Manchester City and Huddersfield Town had their moments this afternoon and certainly could have scored at least a couple of goals each. However, it was the lack of good final balls that saw both teams suffer.
City pretty much seemed to bank on their wingers to get into the penalty area and clearly missed the likes of David Silva and Kevin de Bruyne, who have the ability to break through defences right from the centre – the way Pep Guardiola likes it.
On the other hand, Huddersfield seemed energetic and active in attack but lacked maturity. On many occasions, the players simply went for a shot from really tight angles despite having players in support. Their passing was below par when it came to the final third and that will hurt them the most after today’s game.
#4 Jesus Navas is too one dimensional
Pep Guardiola decided to rest Raheem Sterling with the game against Monaco in mind and started with Jesus Navas, a man he is familiar with from his time in Barcelona, when the Spanish winger did give Pep a tough time, while playing for Sevilla.
The former Sevilla player is well known for his pace and ability to cross, but it looks like Navas doesn’t really have too much more to offer. Especially with the build up play of Manchester City, Navas is left to simply go down the flank and put the ball into the box hoping for someone to get to it, with only one target man in Sergio Aguero, and usually many more opposition players.
He hardly ever seemed to look around him this afternoon as he certainly had a number of great chances to cut the ball back into the centre. His work rate has, however, been decent and that would certainly impress Guardiola.
#5 Manchester United reaching the League Cup final could be a blessing in disguise for City
Manchester United’s cup final against Southampton next weekend ensures Manchester City get the weekend off as their Manchester derby has now been postponed. With a big fixture against AS Monaco coming up this week, Pep will expect the most out of his players on the grandest stage of them all.
Pep will not have to worry about fixture congestion at the moment. However, as the season progresses, he might have to prepare his team for many important games within a short period of time, which is always a tough job.
The Citizens will now have a week off after their game against Monaco and will face Huddersfield on the 28th of February.
