Pep Guardiola felt Phil Foden ‘was not good’ in Manchester City’s 3-0 win at Crystal Palace, despite the England star winning Man of the Match.
Foden scored the second goal of the game at Selhurst Park, with Erling Haaland opening and completing the scoring.
The Eagles had chances and a three-goal defeat felt a little harsh, but it was a very solid and impressively ruthless display from Manchester City, who are looking more serious title challengers than they were earlier in the season.
Foden told Sky Sports of his performance: ‘I’ve been in great form in the Premier League recently and I’m delighted to keep that going.’
However, Guardiola was not so delighted, criticising the 25-year-old for giving the ball away too much in south London.
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‘I know people may think differently but I think Phil today was not good, he didn’t play at his best,’ said Guardiola. ‘He lost a lot of balls, he was in a rush with decisions and was so anxious.
‘He has to keep the ball and be associated with the other ones and in the right moments make explosions that only he has in terms of goals and assists.
‘Before he arrives there, he has to be more calm. But he wants to do it well and sometimes he makes situations not clear but Phil in terms of work ethic defensively, how he presses, how he comes back, he is incredible.
‘Even with my opinion today, one of the best at the end was Phil. He ran maybe the most in the team and scored a goal because close to the box he was unbelievable.
‘He has a lot of margin to understand the game. He will not improve this incredible quality because it is top but understanding the game, the way you have certain moments, the way you have to accelerate or decelerate, just the timing of the tempo he will give it. Everyone has a margin to improve. Everyone.’
Foden did accept that he made mistakes in possession during the win, seemingly agreeing with his manager on his performance.
‘Really happy with the goal at the right time,’ he told the BBC. ‘It just made us a little bit more relaxed. It was a crucial goal at a crucial time. I’ve been in good form, scoring a lot recently and long may it continue.
‘In the first half I gave a lot of balls away and I was trying to do too much with it. Against Palace you need to relax and play extra passes. That is the standard I set myself and so does the manager. He knows there is more to come from me.’
Metro at the Match: Crystal Palace 0-3 Man City
Pino wasteful in front of goal
Yeremy Pino will be frustrated with himself for missing a brilliant chance in the first half, hitting the crossbar when through on goal. The Spain international had other openings as well and is clearly not the best finisher. He is lively, tricky and fast, but needs to sharpen up in front of goal.
Wharton needs to add goals to his game
England international Adam Wharton is superb at pinging the ball about in midfield but is still yet to score a goal for Crystal Palace. He has such technical quality, he should be getting on the scoresheet and could make the difference in tight games. He hit the post in the first half with a well struck effort, while he completely fluffed a half chance on his left foot after the break.
Guehi looked an impressive match for Man City’s monster
Erling Haaland scored the opener, but whenever Marc Guehi came up against the behemoth he handled him really well. The England defender is likely to get a big move in 2026 and he showed here that he can deal with the world’s best. Not too many can match up to the Norwegian in a physical contest at close range, but Guehi did so admirably. Maxence Lacroix was also good in this sense.
Crystal Palace player ratings: Henderson 6, Richards 6, Lacroix 6, Guehi 7, Clyne 6, Wharton 6, Kamada 6, Mitchell 6, Sarr 5, Pino 5, Mateta 4
Subs: Nketiah 4, Hughes 6, Uche 4
Haaland ruthlessly efficient yet again
The three Crystal Palace centre-backs did pretty well against the giant Norwegian, but not well enough. The prolific striker escaped Chris Richards by a yard to have the space to head home the opener. He only needs one chance and he takes it. He took his second from the spot. 102 goals for Manchester City.
Matheus Nunes has become a hit at right-back
When the Portugal international first moved to right-back from midfield he was very unconvincing but he has developed impressively and is now a regular there. Defensively he is still not the best, but solid enough, while he clearly brings a lot of quality going forward from that position. His cross for Haaland’s opener was fantastic.
Foden lethal from the edge of the box
Any goalkeeper seeing Phil Foden with space on the edge of the penalty area will be fearing the worst. The 25-year-old feels inevitable from 20 yards and was so again today. How he was given so much space in the D is a question that the Palace midfielders will need to answer. His developing partnership with Rayan Cherki must be very exciting for City fans.
Man City player ratings: Donnarumma 8, Nunes 8, Dias 7, Gvardiol 7, O’Reilly 8, Silva 7, Gonzalez 7, Reijnders 6, Cherki 8, Foden 8, Haaland 8
Subs: Savinho 6, Ait-Nouri N/A, Lewis N/A, Marmoush N/A