John McGinn can put final nail in Pep Guardiola coffin in Aston Villa v Man City
Pep Guardiola is under immense pressure for the first time in his Manchester City career heading into the clash against Aston Villa.
The Villans will host the reigning Premier League champions at Villa Park on Saturday [21 December], with both sides reeling from a loss on the weekend after Anthony Elanga’s 93rd-minute strike secured a 2-1 loss against Nottingham Forest for Villa, a day before City’s home loss to Manchester United.
Indeed, City head to Birmingham with only one win in their last 11 outings across all competitions and one Aston Villa player will be licking his lips at the opportunity to pile further misery on Guardiola.
John McGinn can run riot for Aston Villa v Manchester City
McGinn has been consistently finding himself among the goals for Villa as of late, and after shining above his teammates at the City Ground on Saturday [14 December], he will be smelling blood against a wounded Manchester City.
It has not been all sunshine and rainbows for the Aston Villa captain this season – his place in the side was brought into question earlier this year after dreadful displays against Southampton and Brentford.
However, McGinn has put his poor performances behind him and has been setting an example for his teammates even in the face of adversity.
Unai Emery had looked to turn a corner at Villa Park after replying to an eight-match winless run across all competitions with three back-to-back victories until Elanga put an end to the winning streak.
Two goals in the dying embers of the contest put a dagger through Villa hearts, but still, there were plenty of positives to take away ahead of the match-up against Manchester City.
McGinn produced an attacking clinic at the City Ground, completing 79 per cent of his passes, with four of those defined as key passes, including the assist for Jhon Duran’s goal [Sofascore].
Although his threat in front of goal was limited, with only one shot on goal on the day, the Scotland international focused his efforts on being the playmaker for his side.
He completed 80 per cent of his crosses and 50 per cent of his dribbles against Forest, who somehow went on to snatch the late win.
Furthermore, his defensive workrate was on point – he won 71 per cent of his contested duels, all while making two tackles and one interception.
Matheus Nunes lined up for Manchester City at left-back at the Etihad, but even if Rico Lewis returns to the side at Villa Park, McGinn’s form suggests he will have a field day on the right flank against whoever lines up to face him.
If that is the case and he helps Villa to a victory, you have to wonder what is next for Guardiola at City.
In other Aston Villa news, the Villans could lose Diego Carlos to AC Milan in a Fikayo Tomori transfer twist.
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