Kevin De Bruyne produced a ruthless performance as Manchester City cruised to a 5-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on Wednesday.
Manchester City started the game brilliantly, as Kevin De Bruyne opened the scoring in the seventh minute after Bernardo Silva slipped him through on goal. But Wolverhampton Wanderers hit back shortly after, as Leander Dendoncker finished off a blistering counter-attack after Raul Jimenez nicked the ball off Rodri.
That is where Wolves’ fight ended, as De Bruyne completed his hat-trick in the next quarter of an hour, scoring both goals with his weaker left foot. The finish for the third goal was delightful as he cut in to his left foot on the edge of the box before producing a majestic curler to make it 3-1 in the 24th minute.
Manchester City continued to push forward for more goals after that, while Wolves threatened on the break. The next goal came at the hour mark, with De Bruyne on target again, scoring from close range after Phil Foden’s cut-back somehow found its way to him.
De Bruyne nearly joined the elite list of players to score five goals in a Premier League match, but his next effort smashed the woodwork. Manchester City did net a fifth, with Raheem Sterling finding the back of the net from point-blank range after some nice work by Joao Cancelo and Jack Grealish.
The best bits from our huge win at Molineux ?
Which goal was your favourite? ?#ManCity pic.twitter.com/vLnWnNKdaq
— Manchester City (@ManCity) May 11, 2022
That was the perfect response to Liverpool’s fighting win over Aston Villa on Tuesday, with Manchester City now three points clear of the Reds with two games to go. The Hard Tackle now runs the rule over Pep Guardiola’s men, who have taken a step closer to successfully defending their Premier League crown.
Ederson Moraes: 6/10
Ederson could not have done anything to deny Leander Dendoncker, with Wolves catching Manchester City on the break. Otherwise, the Brazilian goalkeeper barely had anything to do and had the best seat in the house to enjoy the Kevin De Bruyne show.
Joao Cancelo: 6/10
Cancelo was not as influential in the final third as he usually is, even though he saw the ball more often than any other Manchester City player. But the Portuguese international was involved in his side’s fifth goal and did well to keep Rayan Ait-Nouri and Pedro Neto quiet.
Fernandinho: 6/10
Fernandinho settled in as a makeshift centre-back and had his struggles at the heart of the Manchester City defence. But the Manchester City captain grew into the game as the minutes wore on and helped build play up efficiently with his 91 per cent passing rate.
Breaking: Fernandinho has sustained muscular problems tonight, while Aymeric Laporte took a 'tough knock' on his knee, according to Pep Guardiola.
— City Xtra (@City_Xtra) May 11, 2022
Aymeric Laporte: 7/10
Laporte became the latest Manchester City player to sustain an injury, but Guardiola will hope the knock he picked is nothing serious. The Manchester City boss cannot afford another centre-back on the sidelines, with Liverpool still breathing down their necks. Before going off, the Spanish international was reasonably solid and did well to contain Raul Jimenez.
Oleksandr Zinchenko: 7/10
Zinchenko made a strong start to the game, and he was involved in the build-up to the first two goals. After that, the Ukrainian international settled in nicely and did well to keep a check on the dangerous Chiquinho while also completing 90 per cent of his attempted passes. He is ending the season superbly.
Ilkay Gundogan: 7/10
Gundogan was thoroughly professional in his performance, sitting deep to pull the strings for Manchester City as Kevin De Bruyne ran riot in the final third. The German international completed 96 per cent of his attempted passes while opening up play nicely with a few delectable long balls.
Rodri: 6/10
Rodri lost the ball in the build-up to Wolves’ goal, with Raul Jimenez nicking it off him before initiating a blistering counter-attack. That was the only mishap in an otherwise professional display by the Spanish international, who kept play ticking, completing an incredible 98 per cent of his attempted passes.
Kevin De Bruyne: 10/10
Kevin De Bruyne scores a 24-minute hat trick.
Manchester City adding Erling Haaland to this attack: pic.twitter.com/RLU81ahpI0
— B/R Football (@brfootball) May 11, 2022
De Bruyne was sensational on Wednesday, as he completed a hat-trick with his supposedly weaker foot before netting the fourth goal in the second half. The Belgian international started and finished the move for his first goal before showing superb awareness in the build-up to the second.
The finish for the third goal was magnificent, as he produced an Arjen Robben-esque goal and unleashed an Erling Haaland celebration before netting his fourth of the night. The only blemish in De Bruyne’s performance was his inability to keep a track of Dendoncker for Wolves’ goal, but that was only a minor blip in a spectacular display.
Phil Foden: 7/10
Foden produced a gritty performance on Wednesday, and he deserved a couple of assists from the game. Sterling denied him after missing a brilliant chance, while De Bruyne’s fourth goal was not credited with an assist, as Foden’s cut-back was deflected towards the Belgian playmaker. Nonetheless, the English international was decent enough against Wolves.
Bernardo Silva: 7/10
Silva reprised the False Nine role and was here, there and everywhere, roaming around superbly to create space for those around him while leaving the Wolves defenders confused with his movement. The Portuguese international slipped in De Bruyne for the opener and constantly looked to make things happen. He is ending the season strongly.
Raheem Sterling: 7/10
Sterling endured a frustrating evening as he spurned a couple of brilliant chances to score before finally finding the back of the net. But the English international did well to carve out the openings and grabbed the assist for De Bruyne’s third goal. He would feel he could have done better against Wolves.
Raheem Sterling’s last two games:
⚽️⚽️ vs Newcastle
⚽️?️ vs WolvesHaaland is joining this attack.. ?? pic.twitter.com/miaIXRfJEM
— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) May 11, 2022
SUBSTITUTES
Nathan Ake: 7/10
Laporte’s knock forced Guardiola to call upon Ake. And while the Dutchman was not fit enough to be involved, he still worked hard to successfully keep Wolves at bay.
Riyad Mahrez: N/A
On for Fernandinho, Mahrez did not play enough to warrant a rating.
Jack Grealish: N/A
Grealish did not play enough to warrant a rating, but he made his mark on the game by linking up nicely with Cancelo in the build-up to Sterling’s goal.
