Manchester City's young wide pair can become the best in England
As far as Champions League nights go for entertainment purposes, you’d be hard pressed to find a more exciting evening than Tuesday. A total of 14 goals were scored across two games as Manchester City secured a 5-3 win over Monaco, while Atletico Madrid battled to a 4-2 win in Germany at Bayer Leverkusen’s expense. City may have conceded three away goals, with Monaco far from out of the tie, but their attack certainly has the means to dump their Ligue 1 counterparts out of Europe.
The goal glut at the Etihad Stadium was kickstarted by youngster Leroy Sane. The Germany winger showed excellent awareness to not only pick out Raheem Sterling to tap into an empty net, but ensure David Silva’s pass through did not go to waste. The Spaniard uncharacteristically underhit a pass for Sane, yet he slowed his run to allow his trailing leg to knock the ball out from under his feet before squaring for Sterling to net just his second Champions League goal of the season.
Not to be left out of the goals, Sane got his name on the scoresheet late on to wrap up the victory for City, who, despite holding a relatively slender lead, will have been delighted to have twice come from behind to secure victory. After his big money arrival from Schalke over the summer, it’s taken Sane time to really establish himself in the City XI, in part due to injury, but now that he’s nailed down a starting berth, it’s tough to imagine Pep Guardiola’s side without the 21-year-old in the team.
With the Spaniard now often implementing a 4-1-4-1 set up, the pressure on Sane and Sterling to help stretch opponents is high from wide areas, a responsibility they both carry out effectively. The pair maximise their trickery on the flanks to devastating effect, with Sane (3.2) ranking second for dribbles per 90 and Sterling (2.9) third of all City players in the Premier League this season. In the Champions League, the pair top the dribble charts at the club, with 3.3 successful dribbles per 90 each. In his final season in charge of Bayern Munich, Guardiola implemented a similar set up to help open things up for his side.
With two of Kingsley Coman, Douglas Costa, Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery deployed on the flanks, the quartet boasted the dribbling quality to run at opposition defenders. The four wide players ranked in the top five for dribbles per 90 of all Bayern players in the Bundesliga last season and it’s clear Guardiola demands similar of Sterling and Sane for City. They may struggle to match the Bayern foursome’s numbers for direct goal contribution, but their willingness to run at opponents helps punch a hole in defences. Indeed, they are evidently living up to their respective solitary WhoScored strengths of ‘dribbling’.
Sane’s rapid rise to prominence at the Etihad Stadium this year, though, means his performances are perhaps all the more impressive compared to Sterling. The latter is a Premier League experienced winger, while the former could well have struggled in his debut campaign in England given his age, injury history and unfamiliarity with the new league. Yet, he’s taken to his new surroundings like a duck to water, with his WhoScored rating from starts in the Premier League a respectable 7.26. With City ranking second for dribbles per game (13.1) in England’s top tier this term, both Sane and Sterling are living up to their billing as wing wizards as they routinely find their way past opponents.
With Silva and Kevin De Bruyne readily providing the ammunition from infield and Sane and Sterling routinely on the move, the former pair are able to pick out the latter duo, either when they have pulled wide or if they make darting runs in behind the defence. What’s more is they have they attacking quality to carry the ball infield to exploit the space that may be left behind once the starting striker pulls to the flank or drops deep to help in the build up play.
With defenders dragged out of position, both Sane and Sterling are able to pick out their attacking teammates to hit the back of the net, much like the former did for the latter on Tuesday night. Both capable of playing on either flank, the versatility of the duo means they can readily switch wings to help torment defences in City’s pursuit of domestic and continental glory. Guardiola insisted at the beginning of the season that Sane was a signing for the future, but in the here and now, he’s thriving.
With the two working in tandem, they were able to ensure City’s lacklustre defence and overrun midfield wasn’t the downfall of a memorable night at the Etihad Stadium. The attack certainly bailed out the backline on Tuesday night, with Sane and Sterling playing starring roles as Ctity exhibited their attacking potency with ruthless efficiency.
