Manchester City 3-4 Celtic (pre-season friendly)

Manchester City started their pre-season tour on a losing note, going down 3-4 against Celtic in a meeting between the reigning champions of England and Scotland in North Carolina.

In an open and energetic first half, the Hoops took full advantage of Manchester City’s expansive approach and lack of clarity, scoring twice through Nicolas Kuhn and getting another from Kyogo Furuhashi to cancel out the Oscar striker Bobb – pointing out how far along they are in pre-season preparations.

The Blues rallied in the second half as Maximo Perrone and Erling Haaland equalised, but another sudden break from Celtic saw Luis Palma retake the lead which eventually won the game for the Glasgow outfit.

The first shot on target of the game saw the Scottish Premiership champions take the lead just before the 15-minute mark as Matt O’Riley’s incisive play set Kuhn free, the German winger finishing smartly beyond Stefan Ortega.

American fans would have bought their tickets for this one expecting to see Erling Haaland get his act together, and they almost saw him get on the scoresheet twice in the first half, only for new Celtic goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel , who produced two trademark saves to deny the Norwegian. .

The Blues eventually equalized just after the half-hour mark, finally beating Schmeichel with Bobb’s chipped effort trickling over the line. But they were almost immediately reinstated again, as the O’Riley to Kuhn production line conjured up a nearly identical goal to their first.

Celts scored their third away goal on the stroke of half-time, Kyogo making a run in behind Luke Mbete and rounding Ortega to make it 3-1.

But just as Celtic scored before the break, Manchester City pulled one back almost immediately after the restart; Oscar Bobb danced into the opposition area and picked out substitute Maximo Perrone and the midfielder duly tucked in with his first touch.

While Haaland may have been denied in the first period, he was not to be kept quiet for long – Bobb hung a ball to the back post and the big man beat Liam Scales and buried his header high into the net. net to equalize. .

But that propensity to drive balls behind the high line was Manchester City again as Reo Hatate sprung the offside trap and slotted in for Luis Palma to apply the simplest of finishes.

Manchester City have been far from the most fluid, but it was understandable given the combined nature of their squad and the lack of action so far in pre-season, so they will go into their next friendly against AC Milan. saturday with positives to take from it.

Player Ratings

Starting with XI

Stefan Ortega – 6

He was tasked with denying Celtic three huge chances in the 45 minutes of action, but failed to stop any of them hitting the back of his net.

Rico Lewis – 7.5

He moved from full-back to midfield with his usual panache, adopting some clever areas in advanced positions – something he has recently expressed a desire to do more of for City.

Jahmai Simpson-Pusey – 6.5

His Manchester City pedigree was clear to see with his comfort on the ball and although the high line caused him little trouble, the FA Youth Cup winning captain did his part to defend when required .

Luca Mbete – 5

He looked a little panicky in his work on the ball and stopped to allow Kyogo to slot in for Celtic’s third before being withdrawn at half-time.

Josh Wilson-Esbrand – 4.5

I had a nightmare one-on-one really. He just couldn’t deal with the direct dribbling threat of Nicolas Kuhn.

Calvin Phillips – 5

He struggled badly to deal with high-speed transitions in the middle, not providing enough protection for the back line.

Nico O’Reilly – 7

He showed a number of classy touches that will excite Manchester City fans, none more so than a fine choice for Oscar Bobb’s goal.

Oscar Bobb – 8.5 (MOTM)

Was a little quiet outside of his goal in the first half but really showed his authority in the second to set up both goals.

James McAtee – 7

He was impressively comfortable dropping into pockets to look for the ball, playing on the half turn and pushing Manchester City up the pitch with progressive passing.

Jack Grealish – 7.5

A refreshingly aggressive hour from Jack Grealish, where he looked far more confident playing players and being creative than he did for much of last season.

Erling Haaland – 7

He was more quiet out of goalmouth action, scoring just once and drawing two saves from Schmeichel with a sharp move.

Substitutes

Ederson – 6.5

He cut out a couple of crosses well but had no chance on Celtic’s winner.

Callum Doyle – 7

He showed his vast experience (compared to most of his young teammates) to play from the back with confidence.

Mahamadou Susoho – 7.5

He put up some impressive challenges and never looked agitated on the ball. A very good audition.

Maximo Perrone – 7.5

He struck gold with his first touch and added other quality moments.

Joel Ndala – 7

He seemed a livewire with his willingness to attack a full-back, even if the end product wasn’t quite there.

Jadel Katongo – 6

He passed pretty well from behind.

Jacob Wright – 6

Neat enough in midfield.

Ben Knight – N/A

Micah Hamilton – N/A