Brentford vs Man City: Player ratings, analysis and reaction as Foden’s goal puts City eight points clear

Phil Foden handed Manchester City a 10th consecutive Premier League victory and, with it, the prospect of opening the new year with a commanding double-digit lead in the title race.

A championship contest that once promised to be a keenly-fought three-horse race is in danger of turning into another title procession for Pep Guardiola’s defending champions.

After Wednesday night’s events in London, a City win at Arsenal on New Year’s Day would see second-placed Chelsea kick off against third-placed Liverpool on Sunday 11 points in arrears.

Compared to recent City displays, it was far from vintage from Pep Guardiola’s side but with Foden returning to the starting line-up, along with Jack Grealish after the pair were left out for disciplinary reasons, the England international proved the key.

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Player ratings

Brentford (3-5-2)

• Fernandez 6

• Pinnock 7
• Jansson 7
• Sorensen 7

• Roerslev 5
• Baptiste 5
• Jensen 6
• Onyeka 7 (Bidstrup 75, 5)
• Thompson 7 (Ghoddos 81)

• Wissa 7 (Canos 68, 5)
• Toney 8

Man City (4-3-3)

• Ederson 7

• Cancelo 7
• Dias 5
• Laporte 6
• Ake 7

• De Bruyne 7
• Fernandinho 7
• Silva 6

• Jesus 6
• Grealish 5
• Foden 8

A City side that had scored 17 goals in their last three games did not have everything their own way, however.

And less than a minute before Foden’s opener, Brentford provided the champions with a major scare as Joao Cancelo was forced to nod Yoane Wissa’s effort off the City line.

But charging down the other end, City showed their clinical best, Kevin De Bruyne floating an inch-perfect delivery into the Brentford area where Foden was able to sweep the ball in with his first touch from six yards.

Amazingly it was the Belgian’s first league assist of the season, having contributed 32 over the past two seasons – not that City have struggled because of it: they have scored 113 goals in a record-breaking calendar year, 51 of them in this campaign.

Indeed, a goal to the good after 16 minutes and with Brentford decimated by injury, illness and suspension, a repeat of the seven City hit past Leeds or the six they netted against Leicester looked possible.

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Brentford had other ideas, as they had throughout a first half in which City’s tendency to give away tactical fouls presented the hosts with a series of threatening set-pieces.

Frank Onyeka planted an early shot directly at Ederson and the keeper was forced to save well at his near post after a Wissa cross took an awkward deflection off Ruben Dias.

City, for all their possession, failed to again test Alvaro Fernandez in the home goal, in the first half at least.

And a pair of tit-for-tat fouls between Fernandinho and Ivan Toney – both of whom should have been booked – summed up how combative the underdogs were.

The De Bruyne-Foden tandem almost linked again a minute after the restart with the latter glancing the former’s cross just beyond Fernandez’s far post.

A couple of minutes later, Fernandinho set up the Belgian for a shot which he curled into the arms of the Brentford keeper.

And on 50 minutes, Foden thought he had scored the second goal on his return when he headed in from a Grealish cross only to be judged offside.

Brentford lived dangerously, especially when De Bruyne struck the outside of their post from 20 yards on 65 minutes, but remained unbowed, even after Aymeric Laporte’s 87th minute header providing City with their second disallowed effort of the night, again for offside.

Foden: You can drop points at any time

City’s goalscorer Foden shrugged off the suggestion that his side had made an incisive move at the top of the Premier League despite gaining points on both Chelsea and Liverpool in the last 24 hours.

Victory over Brentford came 45 minutes after Chelsea had been down by a late Danny Welbeck equaliser, while Ademola Lookman’s goal at the King Power Stadium on Tuesday night saw Liverpool beaten.

The results mean that City are now eight points clear at the top of the table with arguably their toughest games of the season – they have already played both title rivals and Manchester United away from home this campaign – already behind them.

“It’s the most challenging league in the world and it just goes to show that you can drop points at any time,” Foden insisted.

“The team is remaining focused at the moment and playing really well so I’m happy.”

The England talisman featured in a variety of roles, starting on the left but ending the game as a lone, withdrawn No 9, scoring a striker’s goal thanks to a perfectly timed run into the six-yard box.

“Maybe in the future I can move into that but wherever the manager puts me I try and do my best for the team,” Foden added.

“It’s really good that I’m adaptable and I can fit in anywhere.”

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