Hamza proves he can put past mistakes behind him
TALKING POINTS FROM EUROPA LEAGUE VICTORY
UP until the past fortnight, Hamza Choudhury had not won a single match he’d started this calendar year.
In January, Wilfred Ndidi’s injury handed him an opportunity. He had changed the game as a second-half substitute in the first leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final, and then was put into the 11 for a home clash with Southampton. City lost in what was, at that point, their worst performance of the season.
Then a “misdemeanour”, as Brendan Rodgers described it, saw him miss an important training session that prompted the manager to leave him out of the trip to Burnley.
Returning for a clash with Wolves in February, he was sent off and suspended.
He made one start after the restart in the summer, in the Champions League decider with Manchester United, where he was robbed of possession in the build-up to the first goal as City missed out on the top four.
Add all this up and it perhaps explains why Papy Mendy was the man chosen to fill in for Ndidi this season, and the Frenchman has played to a level that there is no debate over whether he or Choudhury should be the deputy in defensive midfield.
It had reached a point where there were legitimate questions over the academy graduate’s role at the club.
But after scoring in Athens, Choudhury showed against Braga that he has plenty to offer, and is correcting past mistakes.
The 23-year-old’s best attribute is his ability to steal in with a surprise interception high up the pitch, and he did this countless times on Thursday night. It’s an excellent skill to have because it’s simultaneously both a defensive action – stopping the opposition moving into dangerous areas – and an attacking one, that puts City on the front foot when the opposition are not set in defence.
There were no signs of the rash challenges and slack passing that have marred his displays in the past either. It was the sort of performance that made it clear he has a role, and an important one, to play in this team.
PRE-SEASON is the time for making mistakes, and Luke Thomas certainly did.
In the draw with Blackburn at the King Power Stadium, the young fullback was caught out by the diagonal ball, and not just once. Seeing it as a route to goal, Rovers kept pinging balls to City’s left-hand side, with
Thomas confidently going for the header every time. On each occasion, he misjudged the flight of the ball, and it floated over his head into the space he had just vacated. But when you’re young and learning, the key is to make sure you recognise these mistakes and ensure they do not happen again. In just a few months, Thomas has improved to a level where Rodgers feels he can start the youngster in Premier League and European matches. In the games against Leeds and Braga, he was targeted for long, switched passes, and his judgement was spot on. He either leapt to win the header, or hung back and kept his position.
The more he shows he is learning, the more confidence Rodgers will have in him.
PLACED into a new role last season, James Maddison did it diligently.
For much of the last campaign, he was a number eight. Rodgers expected him to play a box-to-box role, working back and winning tackles while also getting forward to play the passes to Jamie Vardy and
It is only natural for Brendan Rodgers to temper the excitement, but it’s getting harder for City fans to hold back
the wingers. His defensive ability improved drastically, and while his attacking output took a hit, he was still influential high up the pitch. But it’s a delight to see him back in a solely attacking role.
Playing as a number eight blunted some of Maddison’s best talents, and back in behind the striker, he is clearly enjoying the greater freedom.
The way he receives the ball and manoeuvres his body to shake off defenders is superb, and his choice and weight of pass spot on.
He is the sort of player who is a joy to watch when in full flow, and after injuries, he is getting back to his creative best in the hole behind the forward.
IT is only natural for Rodgers to temper the excitement, but it’s getting harder for City fans to hold back.
The victory over Braga was City’s fifth in a row and their biggest of the season. And this was not a pushover of an opponent. Braga are third in Portugal, are European regulars and were on a six-game winning streak of their own.
The football played in the final half-hour, fast, one-touch moves to bamboozle Braga, was the closest City have come to replicating the brilliant football of last autumn, when they secured that recordbreaking win at Southampton among other fine results.
Of course, Rodgers is likely to not get too carried away, because passages of play with City at their best were few and far between for a few months after last season’s winning run ended.
But hopefully the experience of last season’s dip in form will mean it doesn’t happen again. City supporters are struggling to contain themselves at the thought of seeing this football for months to come.
THREE wins from three, with nine goals scored, City’s start to the Europa League campaign could barely have been better.
The objective is to win the group, and that is now in sight.
Victory in Braga after the international break will secure qualification and will clinch top spot in the pool if AEK Athens fail to beat Zorya Luhansk.
Then, Rodgers can really rotate in the final two games – and maybe hand run-outs to the likes of Khanya Leshabela and Ethan Fitzhugh, young midfielders on the bench on Thursday – keeping his players fresh for a Premier League campaign where City are also in contention.