Manchester City trail AFC Bournemouth until the 84th minute, then substitute Cherki sets up two goals in seven minutes.
The numbers
| Manchester City | AFC Bournemouth | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 66% | 34% |
| Shots | 13 | 5 |
| On target | 6 | 4 |
| xG | 2.25 | 0.65 |
| Corners | 8 | 3 |
| Pass accuracy | 88.8% | 79% |
Result the chances deserved: Manchester City 74% / 17% / AFC Bournemouth 9% (Poisson).
Starting line-ups
Manchester City (4-2-3-1): Donnarumma, Lewis, Khusanov, Dias, Gvardiol, Anderson, Guéhi, Foden, O'Reilly, Semenyo, Haaland.
AFC Bournemouth (4-2-3-1): Petrović, Smith, Hill, Silva, Truffert, Cook, Scott, Rayan, Kluivert, Tavernier, Evanilson.
AFC Bournemouth subs: Tóth, Jebbison & Adams (75', Kluivert, Evanilson & Cook), Gannon-Doak (89', Rayan). Bournemouth manager: Marco Rose, in his first league game. Yellow cards: Evanilson (45+1'), Silva (85' per Sky Sports; FotMob has 89'). Minutes from FotMob. Sky Sports has Kovačić coming on at 63' and times the winner at 90+2'. Attendance 60,645.
Key moments, move by move
- AFC Bournemouth work the ball forward into the final third.
- Evanilson provides the final ball across the box (FotMob credits him with the assist).
- Tavernier arrives at the back post and slots it in (TNT Sports).
- Substitute Cherki whips in a corner from the right (NBC Sports).
- Guéhi, playing in midfield, is left unmarked in the middle of the box.
- He heads it in powerfully. Only his second Premier League goal with his head (The Analyst).
- Deep in stoppage time, Cherki has the ball in front of AFC Bournemouth's back line.
- Gvardiol runs beyond it from left-back, and Cherki finds him with a clever pass.
- Gvardiol finishes calmly into the bottom corner.
- The flag goes up, but VAR finds James Hill playing him onside.
Two holders, one creator, and a low block that held for 83 minutes
- A safe midfield. Maresca started Guéhi, a centre-back, beside Anderson as a second holding midfielder, with O'Reilly at No. 10 between Foden and Semenyo (FotMob). "That's why I'm looking for solutions," he said (Sky Sports).
- Plenty of ball, few ideas. Manchester City had 66% of the ball and 37 touches in AFC Bournemouth's box to 6 (FotMob), but made only 0.49 xG before half-time, less than Bournemouth's 0.55 (The Analyst). Bournemouth were happy to sit deep and try to spring counters (NBC Sports).
- The chances were there, the finishing wasn't. Haaland fired wide after O'Reilly's surging run (13'), had a header tipped round the post (39') and skewed one off target (75'); Guéhi headed wide from three yards (52'). Manchester City missed four big chances (Sky Sports stats).
- Cherki and set pieces turned it. 1.04 of Manchester City's 2.25 xG came from set plays (Sky Sports stats). Cherki came on for O'Reilly at 63' and assisted both goals, the first City substitute to assist twice in a league game since Gündoğan in 2021 (The Analyst).
Recreate it in FM26
Manchester City's two-holder 4-2-3-1 against a low block
| Pos | Player | In Possession | Out of Possession |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Donnarumma | Ball-Playing Goalkeeper | Goalkeeper |
| RB | Lewis | Inverted Full-Back | Full-Back |
| RCB | Khusanov | Centre-Back | Stopping Centre-Back |
| LCB | Dias | Ball-Playing Centre-Back | Covering Centre-Back |
| LB | Gvardiol | Full-Back | Full-Back |
| RDM | Anderson | Deep-Lying Playmaker | Screening Defensive Midfielder |
| LDM | Guéhi | Half-Back | Dropping Defensive Midfielder |
| RW | Foden | Inside Winger | Tracking Winger |
| AM | O'Reilly | Attacking Midfielder | Tracking Attacking Midfielder |
| LW | Semenyo | Inside Forward | Winger |
| ST | Haaland | Poacher | Centre Forward |
Team instructions
In Possession
- Passing DirectnessShorter
- Attacking TransitionPatient Build-Up
- PatienceWork Ball Into Box
- Crossing StyleBalanced
Out of Possession
- Line of EngagementHigh Press
- Defensive LineHigher
- Defensive TransitionCounter-Press
The idea: Two holding midfielders, one of them a centre-back, sit behind O'Reilly and the front three, so the opponent is pinned back and loose balls are won high. The first half showed the limit: with one runner at No. 10 there was little creativity. In FM, use an Advanced Playmaker at AM, as Cherki was after 63'.
What FM26 can't copy: FM26 won't reproduce four missed big chances, or how much of the xG (1.04) came from set pieces.
Our reading of this match in FM26 terms, not an exported tactic file. Role names as in FM26.
What if? Replay it with a different plan
Our best alternative plan: Formation 4-3-3, Cherki on at 46' (for O'Reilly). Start with a second creator between the lines and bring Cherki on at half-time instead of 63'. Manchester City needed ideas, not more of the ball: 0.49 xG in the first half. It moves Manchester City's win chance from 74% to 79% (xG 2.25–0.65 becomes 2.70–0.70). Try your own changes to formation, pressing, approach and substitutions.
The game-changer Manchester City needed
Rayan Cherki
For 63 minutes the home side circled a compact block with a centre-back, Guéhi, in midfield and O'Reilly as the only creator. Cherki came on and assisted both goals, a corner and a clever pass for Gvardiol's run. He was the one player in the squad built for exactly this problem, and he started on the bench.
Cole Palmer
Against a deep block, the first half produced 0.49 xG and most of the chances fell to Haaland. Palmer makes chances from the right half-space against packed defences and takes set pieces, which produced 1.04 xG here. He would have given the attack a second creator from the first minute.
What the analysts said
“Unfortunately, this is a work in progress.”Enzo Maresca
“I know Marc from Palace. I always thought he could be a good midfielder.”Enzo Maresca on Guéhi
“We are competitors. We came here to win the first time.”Marco Rose
“The game is never over here, you have to defend for five or six minutes longer.”Marco Rose
The fix was on the bench: Manchester City needed Cherki from the start.
Manchester City had 66% of the ball, 37 touches in AFC Bournemouth's box to 6, and 2.25 xG to 0.65 (FotMob). That looks like a comfortable win. It wasn't. City were behind until the 84th minute, and in the first half they made 0.49 xG, less than Bournemouth's 0.55 (The Analyst).
The starting midfield explains the slow start. Guéhi, a centre-back, played beside Anderson as a second holding midfielder, with O'Reilly at No. 10. That is a lot of security against a side that had five shots all game, and not much invention against a compact block. The chances Manchester City did make fell mostly to Haaland (13', 39', 75'), plus Guéhi's header from three yards at 52'.
Cherki changed it. He came on for O'Reilly at 63' and assisted both goals: the corner for Guéhi's header, then the pass for Gvardiol's winner. Maresca called the performance "a work in progress". He was right, but the answer was already on his bench.