Five reasons why City lost
Sportswave soccer pundit, Benedict Ngwenya, wrongly predicted yesterday that Manchester City would beat Barcelona in their Champions League showdown in Manchester.
Benedict also suggested what City needed to do to defeat the Catalans.
Below are his five reasons why City failed to win on home soil.
Barcelona won 2-1 at the Etihad.
1. Barcelona's first half dominance - The Catalans' possession football was out of this world and their movement was just too good. Lionel Messi played deeper than anyone could have anticipated. That disfigured the City defence as they were trying to track him down, which created space for the likes of Neymar, Luis Suarez and Jordi Alba, who kept storming forward.
2. Missed chances - City came out strongly in the second half. Their transition was good and high balls created all sorts of trouble for Barcelona. Vincent Kompany added numbers in attack and City maximised aerial power whenever they were awarded set-pieces and corners. It proved very effective. Edin Dzeko missed a couple of sitters.
3. Red card - City pulled one back in the second half and they were in hot pursuit of an equaliser when Gael Clichy received his marching orders.
4. City missed Yaya Toure - Not to say the Citizens are a one man team, but they always show some signs of being vulnerable when the regular midfield combination that revolves around Toure is not at full strength.
5. Lack of experience - The Citizens should have known that in a continental tournament you cannot be defensively naive in the opening stages of the game. You have to absorb the pressure and play defensively. Only once you have studied the opponents can you start firing on all cylinders.
(File Photo: Gallo Images)
Twitter - @benedictnpg @SportswaveAndre