City lead three times before half-time, concede a Brobbey hat-trick and still win: five from five, but not much control.
The numbers
| Manchester City | Sunderland | |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 55% | 45% |
| Shots | 16 | 17 |
| On target | 6 | 9 |
| xG | 2.82 | 3.57 |
| Corners | 6 | 5 |
| Pass accuracy | 85.5% | 81.4% |
Result the chances deserved: Manchester City 31% / 16% / Sunderland 54% (Poisson).
Starting line-ups
Manchester City (4-2-3-1): Donnarumma, Nunes, Dias, Guéhi, Gvardiol, Fernández, Anderson, Ndiaye, Cherki, Semenyo, Haaland.
Sunderland (4-2-3-1): Roefs, Mukiele, Danso, Ballard, Méthalie, Xhaka, Sadiki, Meunier, Le Fée, Angulo, Brobbey.
Sunderland subs: Fofana (60', Angulo), Isidor (68', Sadiki), Hume (79', Meunier). Sunderland manager: Régis Le Bris. Yellow card: Méthalie (8'). Both sides listed as 4-2-3-1 by FotMob; minute of Haaland's goal given as 81' (premierleague.com, FotMob, Sky stats) or 82' (Sky report). Assists for 3–2 (Guéhi) and 4–3 (Angulo) from premierleague.com and FotMob.
Key moments, move by move
- Méthalie fouls Ndiaye near the right-hand corner of the box and is booked.
- Fernández stands over it from a tight angle. Everyone expects a cross.
- He goes for goal instead and beats Roefs at his near post: his first City goal.
- Le Fée receives between City's lines with time to look up.
- He threads a through ball between Dias and Nunes.
- Brobbey runs onto it and finishes past Donnarumma with the outside of his boot.
- Sunderland try to play out from the back and City's press forces the mistake.
- The loose ball ends with Semenyo on the left side of the box.
- He finds Cherki, who finishes low into the bottom corner.
- Xhaka takes a free kick quickly before City are set.
- Le Fée links with Meunier on the right.
- Meunier's ball across goal leaves Brobbey a tap-in. VAR checks for offside and lets it stand.
- Cherki's cross isn't cleared and the ball bounces around the six-yard box.
- Guéhi keeps it alive.
- Semenyo, in the middle of the box, thunders it in just before half-time.
- Cherki tries a through ball for Haaland on the left side of the box.
- It ricochets off Mukiele and drops for Semenyo.
- Semenyo arrows a strike into the far corner.
- Two minutes later Sunderland have a free kick on the right. Xhaka delivers it.
- Angulo beats Donnarumma to it in the box and flicks it on.
- Brobbey bundles it in from close range for his hat-trick.
- Substitute Doku releases Gvardiol down the left.
- Gvardiol crosses low to the far post.
- Haaland finishes from close range. The flag goes up, but VAR overturns it.
The high press: it wins goals, and when it's beaten Sunderland run straight through
- City pressed high all game. Cherki's goal came straight from it: Sunderland tried to play out and City's press forced the mistake (Read Man City).
- Beat the first wave and the space is huge. Sunderland found three routes: Le Fée releasing Brobbey through the middle, combinations down the right with Meunier, and quick set pieces from Xhaka. Brobbey's first two goals came from the first two.
- Set pieces were a problem at both ends. Sunderland made 1.81 xG from set plays to City's 0.43 (The False 9). Maresca said the second and third goals both came from free kicks: "too easy".
- No control after going 4–2. Brobbey scored again two minutes after Semenyo's second. Dias cleared off the line after Donnarumma missed a cross (Sky). Sunderland had 17 shots and 9 on target, both more than City.
Tactical scenes
Sunderland did not need to beat City's press to score. Xhaka took one free kick before City were set (33') and delivered another that Angulo flicked on (59'). Maresca: "that cannot happen".
Evidence: 2 of Sunderland's 3 goals came from Xhaka free kicks (Maresca named both). Maresca reaction (Man City) · Maresca verdict (Sunderland Echo) · Opta Analyst report · Sky Sports report
City kept arriving on the left of Sunderland's box: Semenyo coming in from the wing, Cherki drifting over, then Doku and Gvardiol late on. Mukiele's side had to defend it again and again.
Evidence: 3 of City's 5 goals were made or finished on the left of the box (29', 57', 81'); City had 33 touches in Sunderland's box. Sofascore report · Sky Sports report
Recreate it in FM26
Manchester City · Manchester City's high press and the space it leaves · 4-2-3-1Show cardHide card
Manchester City's high press and the space it leaves
| Pos | Player | In Possession | Out of Possession |
|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Donnarumma | Ball-Playing Goalkeeper | Goalkeeper |
| RB | Nunes | Full-Back | Pressing Full-Back |
| RCB | Dias | Ball-Playing Centre-Back | Stopping Centre-Back |
| LCB | Guéhi | Centre-Back | Covering Centre-Back |
| LB | Gvardiol | Full-Back | Pressing Full-Back |
| RDM | Fernández | Deep-Lying Playmaker | Pressing Defensive Midfielder |
| LDM | Anderson | Defensive Midfielder | Pressing Defensive Midfielder |
| RW | Ndiaye | Winger | Winger |
| AM | Cherki | Advanced Playmaker | Attacking Midfielder |
| LW | Semenyo | Inside Forward | Winger |
| ST | Haaland | Poacher | Centre Forward |
Team instructions
In Possession
- Progress ThroughLeft
- Shots from DistanceEncouraged
- Passing DirectnessShorter
Out of Possession
- Line of EngagementHigh Press
- Defensive LineHigher
- Trigger PressMore Often
The idea: Press high with both holding midfielders stepping up: it forced the mistake for Cherki's goal, but once Sunderland beat the first wave, nobody was guarding the space in front of the back four, and Le Fée kept finding Brobbey there. To copy it, you need fast centre-backs; for more control, make one of the pair a Screening Defensive Midfielder.
What FM26 can't copy: FM26 won't reproduce five goals from 2.82 xG, or the quick free kicks Sunderland took before Manchester City were set.
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 4-1-4-1, Doku on at 60' not 75' (for Ndiaye), Kovačić on at 58' (for Cherki). Keep the press, which won City the ball for goals, but put one holding player behind it and bring Kovačić on to calm things at 4–2. Doku earlier adds the chances the extra caution costs. It moves Manchester City's win chance from 31% to 39% (xG 2.82–3.57 becomes 2.87–3.02). Try your own changes to formation, pressing, approach and substitutions.
The game-changer Manchester City needed
Mateo Kovačić
After 4–2 the game stayed wide open: Brobbey scored two minutes later and Dias cleared off the line at 4–3. Kovačić is a press-resistant carrier who keeps the ball in tight spaces, which is what City needed for the last half-hour.
Moisés Caicedo
Once the first press was beaten, Sunderland kept finding Le Fée in front of City's centre-backs. Caicedo covers exactly that ground and wins the ball back after a press is bypassed, so City could keep pressing without leaving Brobbey one-on-one.
What the analysts said
“To be honest, I prefer to win 1-0 than 5-3 but I expected a very difficult game.”Enzo Maresca
“The second goal came from Xhaka, a quick free kick and that cannot happen.”Enzo Maresca
“Off the ball, they are very aggressive, on the ball they have different weapons. For example, Brobbey.”Enzo Maresca
“We didn't compromise our identity.”Régis Le Bris
City won 5–3, but Sunderland made the better chances.
What's happening. City led three times before half-time and were pegged back three times. Brobbey scored a hat-trick. City won on finishing: Fernández's free kick and Semenyo's two goals came from spots that usually don't produce goals.
How it works. City push a lot of players forward to press high. Sunderland didn't try to pass through that press; they went past it quickly. Le Fée and Meunier kept getting the ball behind City's midfield, and Sunderland also used set pieces, one free kick taken before City were set. When a press is bypassed, defenders face runners at full speed with no midfield cover.
What the shots say. Replaying every shot, this result comes up about one time in four; Sunderland win more than half the replays. Sunderland scored three of four big chances, City one of three. City allowed little in their other four league games, so this may be an outlier, but it was also the first opponent to attack them at pace.