A good run out where we had four jobs to do.
1. Rotate the squad
2. Win & qualify
3. Avoid injuries
4. Avoid red cards
We achieved three out of four.
I'm absolutely gutted about Stones who's been imperious since his return. Pep said it seems like a recurrence of his previous injury & he'll be out for a while. :-(
Hopefully Akanji's back injury isn't too serious & doesn't keep him out too long.
Thankfully the Viking was OK to play, & he seemed full of beans. His second goal was an absolute howitzer running across the edge of the area, with an unstoppable shot to finish.
Foden's goal was one of sheer brilliance! His control, movement, the two touches & the finish were world class.
We did what we needed to do, but were profligate with our finishing. It was hard not to expect an easy night, but so it more or less proved with us being able to utilise the bench & not really exert ourselves too much.
We've got a tough run of fixtures coming up & need to rest & rotate the squad as best we can, because the drop off to Philips, Nunes & Bobb is too much if injuries strike as we found out against Newcastle, Wolves & Arsenal.
We need to be fully prepared for a tough away fixture against Chelsea on Sunday, where Sterling & Palmer will have a point to prove.