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Manchester City logo
Premier League
Oct 31, 2015 at 3pm UK
 
Norwich logo

2-1

Otamendi (67'), Toure (89' pen.)
FT(HT: 0-0)
Jerome (83')

Player Ratings: Manchester City 2-1 Norwich City

Sports Mole rates each of the players who took part in Manchester City's 2-1 Premier League win over Norwich City.

Manchester City have secured a 2-1 win over Norwich City at the Etihad Stadium to maintain their hold on the Premier League's top spot.

The Citizens dominated on the pitch but could not get onto the scoresheet until the 67th minute when Nicolas Otamendi headed home from a corner.

Just six minutes from time, Joe Hart spilled a Robbie Brady cross into the path of Cameron Jerome, who tapped the loose ball into the back of the net.

Moments later, however, Canaries captain Russell Martin was shown a straight red card for a deliberate handball on the goalline, allowing Yaya Toure to get the hosts back into the lead from the spot.

Sports Mole rates each of the players who took part in the game to determine who shone for their team and who let the side down.


Manchester City's Belgian midfielder Kevin De Bruyne (R) celebrates with Manchester City's Nigerian striker Kelechi Iheanacho after scoring their second goal during the English League Cup fourth round football match between Manchester City and Crystal Pal© Getty Images

Man City

Goal

Joe Hart: Spilled Brady's cross to grant Jerome's equaliser but made amends with a great save on a deflected Martin Olsson shot in stoppage time. (6/10)

Defence

Vincent Kompany: Was largely unshakeable in front of Hart for long spells and went close with a header in the first half from a Kevin De Bruyne corner. (7/10)

Nicolas Otamendi: Weighed in with a number of important challenges, protected his goalkeeper stoutly, and opened the scoring with a thumping bullet header in the second half. (8/10)

Bacary Sagna: Did not get forward as much as he would have liked due to Norwich's shape at the back, but linked up well with the likes of Jesus Navas and De Bruyne. (7/10)

Aleksandar Kolarov: Like Sagna, he found it hard to penetrate the Norwich defence as a result of their back five system, and also missed a penalty late on, though it would not prove costly. (6/10)

Midfield

Yaya Toure: Covered a lot of ground and his passing was sharp and accurate all game. Won it for his side late on with a confident penalty from the spot. (8/10)

Kevin De Bruyne: Played in a number of dangerous crosses and set pieces, with one of them conjuring up Otamendi's opener for Manuel Pellegrini's side, before coming off early in the second half. (7/10)

Fernandinho: Made few mistakes with his passing but was overrun on a few occasions by Norwich's midfielders in the second half, in particular Nathan Redmond. (6/10)

Jesus Navas: Caused Olsson a number of problems with his combination play alongside the likes of Sagna down the right flank. (7/10)

Attack

Wilfried Bony: Brought others into the game with his hold-up play but was lacklustre in front of goal, missing a number of good opportunities to score. (6/10)

Kelechi Iheanacho: Looked steady when combining with Bony before coming off in the second half. (6/10)

Substitutes

Martin Demichelis: Came off the bench with a minute to go, so was not able to make much of an impact. (6/10)

Raheem Sterling: His shot towards goal was handled by Martin, leading to Man City's winning penalty, and won a spot kick himself after a late drive towards Brady. (7/10)

Fernando: Brought on for De Bruyne in the second half to add more midfield protection and did a good job in front of his side's backline. (6/10)


Cameron Jerome of Norwich City celebrates scoring his team's first goal during the Barclays Premier League match between Manchester City and Norwich City at Etihad Stadium on October 31, 2015© Getty Images

Norwich

Goal

John Ruddy: Spilled a Navas cross late on, which led to Martin sacrificing himself by stopping a Sterling shot with his arm and getting sent off. (5/10)

Defence

Sebastien Bassong: Dealt well against Man City's forays with solid anticipation and was constantly in the thick of it getting balls out of his side's danger zone. (7/10)

Martin Olsson: Found it tough in the second half against Navas and De Bruyne but was a steady performer and helped keep the opposition's incisive forays relatively low. (6/10)

Ryan Bennett: Came off second best against Otamendi in the build up to Man City's opening goal. (5/10)

Russell Martin: Defended well for large portions of the game but got sent off for handling a shot by Sterling which led to Man City being awarded their winning penalty. (6/10)

Robbie Brady: Unexpectedly helped his side edge level with a cross that was spilled by Hart for Jerome's goal but gave away a late penalty on Sterling in a mixed afternoon. (6/10)

Midfield

Matt Jarvis: Forced a good save from Hart with a first-half effort but came off during the break with an injury. (6/10)

Youssouf Mulumbu: Distributed possession neatly around him before coming off in the second half, a precautionary measure as he has only recently returned from injury. (7/10)

Jonny Howson: Tracked back deep into his own half for most of the match to shackle Man City's attacking players, and stifled Kolarov well. (7/10)

Alexander Tettey: Put in a good shift and made it difficult for the hosts to find much joy until Martin's dismissal. (6/10)

Attack

Cameron Jerome: Received little service towards him but held it up when available, and was allowed to score from Hart's mistake late on, though it would not lead to a share of the points. (7/10)

Substitutes

Gary O'Neil: Tracked opposition players closely and put in plenty of effort off the bench. (6/10)

Nathan Redmond: Caused Fernandinho a few problems with his pace and directness, and gave his side's attacking forays an extra edge. (6/10)

Lewis Grabban: Replaced Jerome in the dying minutes of normal time, with too little time to make an impact. (6/10)


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Manchester City's Chilean manager Manuel Pellegrini watches during a UEFA Champions league Group D football match between Manchester City and Sevilla at the Etihad Stadium in Manchester, north west England on October 21, 2015.
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