Speaking about gaining their first Premier League point in such a long time, Garde commented that they got the point they’d been “looking for, for a long time now”. It was one of several golden chances for City which they failed to take. Unfortunately for Aston Villa though their bounce here might not be enough as they face a Manchester City team that have been Machine like of late.
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They always end up passing it wide and crossing it in to nobody.
Quite how they contrived to lose points will remain a mystery, but it’s a result that requires context.
Meanwhile their opponents Manchester City name an unchanged line-up from the team that won 3-1 at Sevilla in the Champions League during the week, again opting for the 4-2-3-1 formation.
“We can do it if we are concentrated and play with intensity and especially if we understand if will be a tough game”. “We deserved to win the game”.
He said: “We have been a bit lucky because they touched the bar, we didn’t create so many chances, I know that”.
I think Manchester City will have far too much for Villa here but I do expect the home side to give it a go and get themselves on the scoresheet.
The return of Delph, after his pounds 8?million move to City in July, also dominated the thoughts of Villa fans and there were frequent chants of “one greedy b–d”.
You can follow all the action rom the north London derby on the MirrorFootball blog right here. It was another cross from the Spaniard that presented De Bruyne with a golden chance to score inside the six-yard box but the Belgian, trying to backheel into the net, succeeded only in kicking the ball against his other leg.
Fernando, who was castigated during last season because of poor form, is repairing his reputation with each passing game and is becoming an essential component of the City team.
Having recovered from the groin injury that restricted his movement at the end of last season, he’s now finding his best form.
They hit the woodwork and Villa keeper Brad Guzan denied them with an astonishing block with his head to keep out Raheem Sterling.
But just as Pellegrini’s side seemed to be building up a head of steam, they lost Bony to injury as he pulled up clutching his hamstring.
Aguero sustained a hamstring problem while on global duty with Argentina last month, and was expected to be sidelined for around eight weeks to recuperate from the injury.
“I said before that it was going to be a hard game”.
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“It was a good point for us”, said Garde. “It would be easier for us to have a few strikers available”.
