Man City eliminated from League Cup by Tottenham

With a not-so-strong squad, Man City lost 1-2 to hosts Tottenham in the round of 16 of the English League Cup.

While Tottenham fielded a nearly optimal squad, Man City fielded many young players and did not use Erling Haaland for a single minute.

After the match, coach Pep Guardiola and Haaland were still smiling. The reigning Premier League champions seemed to make no of the fact that they took the League Cup lightly this season.

With a not-so-strong squad, Man City still had 67% possession. However, their attacks were not as effective as Tottenham’s, with only three shots on target, compared to eight from the home team. In just the first 25 minutes, Guardiola’s students received two buckets of cold water from goals from Timo Werner and Pape Sarr.

City’s first goal came in the fifth minute, when Dejan Kulusevski broke into the counter and crossed for Werner to finish past Stefan Ortega. Twenty minutes later, Tottenham doubled their lead with Sarr’s long-range shot.

City’s struggled to build up the ball, with Phil Foden playing highest up front, and Nico O’Reilly and James McAtee playing just behind. It wasn’t until the end of the half that they finally got their first shot on target and scored, thanks to Matheus Nunes – who played on the left wing in the match.

Having to chase the hosts, Guardiola still didn’t bring on Haaland when the Norwegian striker was fit. City had 70% possession in the second half but were unable to find the back of the net against Vicario. Their best chance came in the 89th minute, when O’Reilly’s close-range shot forced Yves Bissouma to clear the ball on the line.

City’s efforts during this period have been commendable, with five teenagers playing at times, including Jahmai Simpson-Pusey, who made his first-team debut. Young talent Jacob Wright was also brought on for Savinho and played with some energy.

Exiting the League Cup is not a for City, as they have time to focus on the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League. Guardiola’s men have two tough away games ahead, against Bournemouth in the Premier League this weekend and Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League next week.