When Alexia Putellas was substituted in the 86th minute, Manchester City fans, tongue-in-cheek, taunted the two-time Ballon d’Or winner, by replying: “Who?”
City kept not only Barcelona captain quiet Putellas but several more of the world’s best players in Aitana Bonmati, Caroline Graham Hansen and Patri Guijarro as they beat the Champions League holders 2-0 at the Joie Stadium on Wednesday. It is the first time the Catalan giants have failed to score in a match in the Champions League group phase and only the second time they have lost a game at this stage of the competition.
Gareth Taylor’s side showed different sides of themselves against what he and his captain Alex Greenwood believe are the best team in the world. City were aggressive from the front in their press and solid at the back.
Taylor used the same starting XI and 4-3-3 structure as the 1-0 win over Brighton & Hove Albion last month, bar one change: Mary Fowler started ahead of Aoba Fujino on the right wing. Like with Brighton, he opted for Naomi Layzell at right-back and switched Kerstin Casparij, who usually plays right-back, to left-back in place of former Barcelona defender Leila Ouahabi.
Taylor said he needed “aggressive full-backs” and Casparij limited Graham Hansen’s threat on the right while Layzell thwarted the attack-minded Fridolina Rolfo on the left.
City’s intent to be on the front foot was clear from the whistle. In the opening minutes Greenwood was almost too aggressive when she stepped up midway inside the Barcelona half only for Bonmati to spin her and release Graham Hansen on the right. The passage of play in the fourth minute ended with the Norway international striking the near post. Moments later Laia Aleixandri spared City’s blushes with a goal line clearance after Ewa Pajor pounced on Vivianne Miedema’s underhit backpass.
Taylor’s tactics were perfect (Carl Recine/Getty Images)
But City stayed true to their plan and took the game to Barcelona, an unfamiliar feeling for a side who usually dominates. They pressed Barcelona’s back line, which prevented the holders from progressing the ball. City won high turnovers leading to attacks closer to goal and were nearly rewarded with their efforts when Lauren Hemp struck the post.
Each member of the City team knew their role and Taylor put his side’s work rate off the ball down to “huge trust”. At times, Hemp would commit to the press, then Miedema stepped up before Casparij won the ball.
It was Casparij who triggered the move which saw Jess Park’s shot palmed away by Cata Coll in the 35th minute. That led to a corner which Coll did not get a hand to and Layzell poked the ball home for her first senior career goal.
🔵 CIIIIITYYYYYY !!!
Naomi Layzell transforms Joie Stadium into Dreamland, as the hosts lead the European champions.
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“We work on pressing from the front, first and foremost because that’s where it begins,” said Greenwood. “Our press was so, so good.”
City operated with intensity and bullied Barcelona off the ball, qualities noted by Bonmati. “They won a lot of duels,” the reigning Ballon d’Or winner said. “We were not so ready to want this kind of duel.”
Barcelona’s new manager Pere Romeu identified City’s aggressiveness before the game and attempted to use the Blaugranas’ right hand side as an outlet. They were thwarted, however, by Hemp, who caused problems for Ona Batlle at right-back, dispossessed Graham Hansen and nicked the ball off Bonmati and Ingrid Engen. The England winger made lung-busting runs up and down the pitch and in the second half slid to concede a throw-in rather than a corner with as much determination as her attacking pursuits.
“We put our bodies on the line,” Hemp said.
Meanwhile Park was relentless, bearing down on Coll, Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw muscled past Mapi Leon and her and Miedema’s hold-up play was secure, allowing City to relieve pressure. Yui Hasegawa, meanwhile, spun Bonmati on occasions and intercepted Engen’s passes out from the back.
In the first half City had 18 touches in the opposition’s box compared to Barcelona’s six but both sides had three shots on target. City, however, took their chance.
In the second period, Barcelona were able to find spaces behind City’s first line of pressing. They put City under more pressure and consequently created more chances. In the next 45 minutes they had 21 touches in the opposition box while City only had three. At times City unnecessarily invited pressure and Greenwood signalled for composure at the back.
Layzell pays close attention to Putellas (PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images)
But, on the whole, the hosts kept a tight structure and forced the visitors to shoot from distance. Bonmati, Claudia Pina and even Keira Walsh, the England and former City midfielder, tried their luck between the 59th and 75th minute but Barcelona’s finishing was not clinical enough. City had fewer shots overall (13 to Barcelona’s 17) and shots on target (four to six) but generated higher quality chances.
“We knew we would have to weather the storm,” said Taylor.
While the momentum shifted in Barcelona’s favour, in the 77th minute City hit on the counter with a long ball from Layzell to Shaw who rounded Coll to double City’s lead.
🐰 Bunny Shaw doubles City’s lead against the European champs!
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Such an assured performance from Layzell, playing out of position at right-back instead of her preferred centre-back role, was not a surprise to Taylor, who described the 20-year-old as “humble” and “very coachable”. England manager Sarina Wiegman was in attendance — Layzell is on her radar and will be hoping the ankle injury she was helped off with at the end is not serious.
The back-to-back European winners have not lost a game in any competition for eight months but, as Bonmati said post-match: “We were not at our best.
“I don’t want to have excuses. Everyone knows my opinion about the league. It’s because we didn’t perform our best and we have to improve.”
Taylor beamed at the fans as he walked across the pitch at the final whistle but he and Greenwood said they will not get carried away. But a fire has been lit in Manchester.
“We’re not here just to be here, we want to win it,” said Hemp. “We’re going to try and go as far as we can. Nights like this — there’s nothing better. That gives us hunger.”
(Top photo: Shaw and Hemp take the acclaim at full-time. Carl Recine/Getty Images)
