TORRES PACKS A PUNCH FOR CITY
Ferran shows Pep he can be City’s missing link up front
NEVER mind a scoring return for Sergio Aguero, if there is one area in which Pep Guardiola needs reinforcements, it is still in t h e g o a l - p o a c h e r s ’ department.
Gabriel Je sus has been misfiring and when Aguero entered the fray for the final q u a r t e r of t h i s l o w- ke y con contest – and hit the target – i t was o n l y h i s f i f t h app appearance of the season.
P Physically, he can no longer be totally relied upon.
So maybe, j ust maybe, Ferran Torres could be an answer, e ven i f only a temporary one.
T h e 2 0 - y e a r - o l d c e r t a i n l y l o v e s a Champions League goal, hi s opportunistic f i ni sh early in the second half a fourth in five appearances in the competition for City.
Whatever role he plays in the future, Torres’ scoring contribution was one of the few things from this game that will give Guardiola ( left) food for thought.
The group win al ready guaranteed, the small matter of Old Trafford on Saturday, not t o mention anoth e r Premier League f i xture on Tuesday, Pep would play the kids or the stiffs, right?
Wrong, of course. City do not have any stiffs. With the exception of two or t hree, t hi s could have been l abelled a reser ve team yet was obviously stacked with expensive, stellar talent.
S i n c e a We m b l e y p e r f o r man c e a g a i n s t Iceland in mid- November t h a t h a d h i m b e i n g officially anointed as the future of the English game, Phil Foden has played barely an hour of Premier League football.
No matter how exaggerated Guardiola’s praise for Foden ( below) has consistently been, it remains obvious he still has minor reservations.
Perhaps Foden has been frustrated by a relative lack of recent Premier League runouts, but he was straining to click into top form here.
It might be that i f you consider yourself a relatively big name and are selected for what is, for your team, a dead rubber, the motivation is low.
It did not really matter, of course, and that is why this t i re d Champions L ea gu e format will surely be changed some time soon.
I n t h e meantime, City would love to win it in its current guise and with this sort of depth, they should again have a good chance.
City ’s breakthrough came when Torres darted on to Valere Germain’s inadvertent assist just after the restart.
That sort of finish is the trademark of Aguero who popped in his return goal from a couple of yards 13 minutes from time, before Raheem Sterling wrapped things up late on.
But i f Aguero has t o spend time out again, it could be Torres that steps up to the plate.