Villa are an excellent side with very good players all over the pitch: City are not the team they have been for the last ten years. Literally! This is true but was startlingly, joyously irrelevant last night. City were without Rodri, Haaland and Stones which would rip the heart out of any team but Ederson, Akanji and Ake couldn't play. Thus 6 of the eleven who won the treble only two years ago, in 23 were injured: Bernado and KdB are supposed to be too old and so the "experts" opinion was that Villa would be too "dynamic" for City to cope with. Not outrageous but simply miles from the truth in the event.
It was not a vintage City performance and some of our passing was sloppy but I really admired our will to win, our sheer determination not to lose. The style of old was not there but the attitude and application were admirable. And fittingly the winner came at the very last gasp engineered by a superb cross behind the Villa back line from a player often criticised for his final ball and hit home by a lad playing out of position and often lambasted for being caught out of position. Not last night! When it really mattered, like the rest of the team, they really stood up to be counted.
