Disgruntled and disappointed City fans headed for the Etihad exits after a second loss in five days following defeat to West Ham last Saturday.
Walking down the endless steps from the new third tier of the South Stand there was one name on everyone’s lips – Jesus Navas.
“End product” and “first man” were phrases that could be picked out time and time again. The Spanish winger reached 100 appearances in sky blue during the victory against Crystal Palace and in that time has always struggled to prove his worth.
An almighty roar went up at the Etihad at one point in the second half when Navas fired a cross wildly into the box, above and behind all teammates. BBC’s Match of the Day singled Navas out for criticism after the West Ham defeat highlighting his inability to find a teammate with any of his crosses that day.
Despite his ineffective crossing, Navas did some excellent work during the game. We only need to look back to the previous defeat against Juventus to see that City lose a lot of attacking threat without the diminutive Spaniard in the side.
City lined up against the Italian champions with Samir Nasri occupying the right-side of midfield. City’s bright start to the season has been characterised by the blistering pace of Raheem Sterling and Sergio Aguero. Nasri does not fit this playing style. He prefers to slow down attacks, look for one-twos and tries to beat his man with skill rather than raw pace. This was highlighted perfectly in the goal he scored against Everton. There was no blistering counter-attack, but a delicate exchange with Yaya Toure before an almost lazy lob over Tim Howard. Compare that to Kolarov’s goal in the same game where he, Sterling and Silva ran almost the entire length of the pitch after repelling an Everton attack.
Against Juventus City’s attacks were pedestrian, predictable and were ultimately ineffective. Nasri slowed down play and allowed the well-drilled Juventus players to get back into their positions. Compare that pedestrian play to the West Ham game where our attacks were, more often than not, quick and frantic. With the outstanding Kevin De Bruyne as main playmaker City almost attacked too quickly. City’s attacks were so fast Aguero and others were often not in the box by the time the ball was ready to be played in.
Jesus Navas found himself in great positions on numerous occasions but he would find his options limited. The attack would happen so quickly that only Aguero would be in the box with others just outside it. This would give Navas moments of indecision, unsure whether to shoot, hold up the ball or attempt to find a teammate amongst a crowd of West Ham defenders.
I’d liken Navas to Darius Vassell. Any City fan who watched Vassell in a sky blue shirt would remember how frustrating he could be. If he just had a moment to react, he could score wonderful goals. But given any time to think about his decision, when taking a penalty or in a one-on-one situation, and you could bet he’d find a way to miss. Navas is the same, give him too long to dwell on a decision and he’ll make the wrong one.
There is still a significant role for Jesus Navas to play at City even after the arrival of Kevin De Bruyne who is already settling in well. He is an outlet that can haul the entire team up the pitch when they are defending and makes runs behind the defence that Samir Nasri will not. He’s always going to be frustrating to watch but 8 assists in last season’s Premier League – more than David Silva – shows that he does have “final product”.
