Manchester City player ratings vs Nottingham Forest: Erling Haaland back with a bang as assist king Kevin De Bruyne inspires rusty champions to vital win in title race

Manchester City rarely have to resort to winning ugly but against a fired-up Nottingham Forest side who played like the world was against them, they had little other option.

And they got the three points they ultimately came for thanks to their ever-reliable duo of Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland, with some help from Josko Gvardiol.

Forest came out all guns blazing in their first home game since their social media posts sent jaws dropping across English football and put City under real pressure throughout the first half.

City struggled to cope but were let off by some poor decision making from their hosts in the final third and got themselves in front with a header from Josko Gvardiol, who got his third goal of the month, from a fine corner delivery from De Bruyne.

Chris Wood and Murillo missed glaring chances to equalise before the break and Forest continued to cause City problems in the second half. But then Haaland came off the bench after missing the trip to Brighton and did what he does best, latching on to a De Bruyne pass and firing into the bottom corner.

Despite the pressure from Arsenal, City are where they want to be, safe in the knowledge that they will win a fourth Premier League title in a row if they win their remaining games. And after proving they know how to win even when they are nowhere near their best, only a fool would bet against them doing just that.

GOAL rates Man City’s players from the City Ground…

• Getty

  Goalkeeper & Defence

  Ederson (4/10):

  Took an early blow to the shoulder and was all over the place for the rest of the first half. Wisely taken off at the break.

  Kyle Walker (4/10):

  Run ragged down his side by the twin threat of Ola Aina and Callum Hudson-Odoi.

  Nathan Ake (6/10):

  Put his physical attributes to good use, keeping a close eye on Chris Wood.

  Manuel Akanji (6/10):

  Forced to sweep up several times when Forest breached the backline from the wings, didn’t get forward too often.

  Josko Gvardiol (6/10):

  Rounded off an excellent April with his fourth goal contribution but was pretty slack otherwise.

  Getty

  Midfield

  Kevin De Bruyne (7/10):

  Set up both goals to make it 15 assists for the season, despite being injured for half of it. Gave Haaland the perfect pass, taking advantage of their wonderful understanding.

  Rodri (6/10):

  Was not as commanding as usual but held things together in the second half.

  Bernardo Silva (6/10):

  Unable to weave his usual magic but worked hard to ensure City didn’t let their lead slip.

  • Getty

    Attack

    Jeremy Doku (5/10):

    Back in the line-up after a string of impressive showings as a substitute but was rather wasteful and hooked at half-time after being dispossessed twice and missing the target twice.

    Julian Alvarez (6/10):

    Worked extremely hard and had got movement but lacked the finishing touch.

    Jack Grealish (5/10):

    Didn’t create much and couldn’t exert as much control as he usually does.

  • getty

    Subs & Manager

    Stefan Ortega (6/10):

    Commanded his box with more authority than Ederson and did well to tip over the one dangerous shot he faced.

    Mateo Kovacic (6/10):

    Gave City more balance after replacing Doku.

    Erling Haaland (7/10):

    Scored on his return from a short lay-off to wrap the points up. What more can you ask for?

    Matheus Nunes (N/A):

    Brought on in the 89th minute.

    Oscar Bobb (N/A):

    Brought on in the 89th minute.

    Pep Guardiola (6/10):

    It was one of the worst first half displays of the season but understandable due to absences of Dias and Foden and ultimately got the job done by bringing on Haaland.

  Source Goal.com