Man City defeat Brentford with seven academy players

Man City 2-0 Brentford

Man City: Rayyan Cherki (32'), Savinho (67')

Pep Guardiola decided to field a side packed with academy players against Brentford in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals. Despite the youthful lineup, City controlled the game and created several chances in front of Mark Flekken’s goal. Brentford’s best opportunity came when City defender Khusanov fouled Kevin Schade just outside the penalty area, but James Trafford saved Mathias Jensen’s free-kick.

In the 32nd minute, City finally broke the deadlock. From a corner, the ball dropped to Rayan Cherki on the edge of the box, and the Frenchman struck a superb shot into the top-right corner to give City the lead. The first half ended 1-0 in favour of Guardiola’s side.

In the second half, City continued to dominate. They created chances in various ways but struggled to add a second goal. That changed in the 67th minute when Tijjani Reijnders carried the ball forward and launched a counter-attack. Savinho ran onto the through ball and fired a left-footed shot that took a deflection off Kristoffer Ajer, wrong-footing the goalkeeper.

With a two-goal advantage, City comfortably controlled the remainder of the match, giving Brentford no chance to respond. The game ended 2-0, sending Manchester City into the Carabao Cup semi-finals. In the other quarter-final played at the same time, Newcastle beat Fulham 2-0, with Lewis Miley scoring a late goal to secure their place in the last four.

Pep Guardiola said after the match: “We have had a run of a lot of games for Erling [Haaland], Ruben Dias and the other ones, and they have to be ready. After West Ham, we have seven days before Nottingham Forest and four or five days before Sunderland, then again a crazy schedule.

“So we have to do it, and we talk a lot about these days. Everyone was connected today. The guys on the bench were connected and they proved it. Matheus was so focused, Bernardo as always. Everyone was there. Josko was there and was incredibly committed.

“We need three more days. We don’t have much time to prepare our next game, just one day, but we are used to it. We want to give our fans a win in that important game before this little break, which is longer than usual.”

Manchester City will now have three days to rest before facing West Ham in the Premier League on Saturday. Every match is crucial as City continue their title race with Arsenal and Aston Villa. With 34 points, Guardiola’s side need to keep winning to put pressure on Arteta’s team while maintaining their advantage over Aston Villa behind them.