“If there’s anyone who’s gonna give us a lifeline from 2-0 down it’s him” – Manchester City fans demand Guardiola to bring on 31-year-old after trailing Crystal Palace at half-time
At the half-time whistle, Manchester City were down 2-0 to Crystal Palace in their Premier League clash, as last season's Premier League champions looked stumped in defense.
The Etihad faithful have been rather upset about the state of things in the match and believe that the only way back for them is by bringing on Ilkay Gundogan.
The 31-year-old has provided lifelines for the Cityzens in recent seasons, becoming a key part of Pep Guardiola's squad over the years. However, his absence from the ongoing match has irked the Manchester City supporters, who have taken to Twitter to demand that the manager substitute him into the game.
Guardiola has responded to their appeal, as Gundogan came on for Joao Cancelo with the clock on the hour.
Here is a selection of the tweets from the unhappy City supporters:
Peps decision to drop gundogan one of our most inform players is baffling
Bring me Ilkay Gundogan. If there’s anyone who’s gonna give us a lifeline from 2-0 down it’s him
Pep needs to stop playing Walker as an inverted full back. Bring on Gundogan, don’t understand why he’s not playing when he’s been key for us,
We need Gundogan on asap, and some fucking pace on the wings 😭
Still don't understand why Pep benched Gundogan today, he's literally our best player this season and didn't even start against Barca
Pep really benched Gundogan for this game, woeful decision
The Cityzens will be hoping to overturn the scoreline and potentially win the match. If there is one team that can be expected to overcome a 2-0 deficit, it is the defending champions.
Manchester City suffer a miserable first-half against Crystal Palace
Manchester City had a miserable first half in their Premier League clash against Crystal Palace at the Etihad Stadium. Guardiola’s men went into the second half two goals behind Patrick Vieira’s side and have a mammoth task ahead of them.
City went behind early in the first half, with English defender John Stones putting the ball into the back of his own net in the 4th minute. Eberechi Eze sent in a superb free kick that came off the Euro 2020 finalist and went into the City net to give the Eagles a fine start on the road.
Things got better for Palace just 16 minutes later, with Joachim Anderson doubling their lead in the 20th minute. Eze was also involved in the second goal. The midfielder whipped in a corner that was emphatically headed in by the Danish defender.
While Manchester City controlled the possession in the game, they couldn’t find a goal in the first half, and Guardiola will be particularly disappointed in that. The home side went into the break looking to plan their comeback, and the fans will be pleased that their appeal for Gundogan has been accepted.
Patrick Vieira will be particularly proud of his team’s performance so far, with the Eagles holding their own against a tougher opponent.