September was a mixed bag for City. After a hugely successful August in which The Blues maintained their 100% record and failed to concede a goal, many tipped us for another strong four weeks; and it looked like this would be the case when a late Kelechi Iheanacho goal at Crystal Palace kept up our fantastic winning streak at the start of the month.
But losses against Juventus, West Ham and Tottenham; thrown in with wins against Sunderland in the Capital One Cup and a Champions League triumph at Monchengladbach, made the month of September an inconsistent one to say the least.
Nonetheless, it still provided us with a lot of goals to savour. I pick out my top strikes from the month:
Kevin De Bruyne v West Ham (19th September)- Premier League
New man Kevin De Bruyne made his debut for City in the loss at home to West Ham on September 19th, and although the result was certainly not in City’s favour, it cannot marr the Belgian’s excellent strike just before half-time to halve the deficit for The Blues.
Perhaps one of the only players in a blue shirt to look even close to hitting the back of the net, the former Wolfsburg man picked up the ball from Sergio Aguero just outside the box and showed great composure to control the bouncing ball and hit it perfectly on the half volley beyond Adrian in the West Ham goal. It was a superbly taken goal and showed the City fans just why the board forked out over £50 million for his services. A great start for the Belgian.
Kevin de Bruyne v Sunderland (22nd September)- Capital One Cup
De Bruyne makes the list again with another well-taken strike away to Sunderland in the Capital One Cup three days later. City advanced on a pacey counter attack which caught the Black Cats out and the Belgian exchanged passes with Raheem Sterling before the latter threaded a pinpoint ball through to de Bruyne to finish with aplomb at the goalkeeper’s near post with his weaker foot. Vitor Mannone in the Sunderland goal should have perhaps done slightly better but the ball was hit with such accuracy by de Bruyne that he stood no chance. It is clear that the Belgian is capable of goals on either foot and he is particularly good at finding a finish at the near-post from a tight angle, which is a difficult skill to master. A great goal to help City on their way to a morale-boosting win.
Raheem Sterling v Sunderland (22nd September)- Capital One
It was not only de Bruyne in amongst the goals in September- Raheem Sterling scored an excellent one of his own on Wearside to take City’s goal tally to four on what was a one-sided affair at The Stadium of Light. Patient build-up play from City resulted in de Bruyne finding the pass for Raheem Sterling to split open the Sunderland defence, and the England midfielder took the ball across his body well to bend it beyond Mannone and secure City’s passage into the next round. Finishing had been one of Sterling’s biggest problems since joining City so it was refreshing to see the winger take his strike well and link up excellently with the likes of de Bruyne to devastating effect.
Sergio Aguero v Borussia Monchengladbach (30th September)- Champions League
I have included this goal simply because of it’s sheer importance to both City and Aguero himself. Leading up to this fixuture, City had won just one of the last four in all competitions after losses to Juventus, West Ham and Tottenham, so a win was a must in Germany if our season was going to get back on track. It looked like it was going to be a heading for a draw afer Nicolas Otamendi cancelled out Stindl’s opener up until the 89th minute, before that man Aguero won and perfectly converted a penalty in the final minute of normal time to hand City all three points and inspire some confidence into the Argentine himself, after he had scored just two in all competitions before the trip to Gladbach. What a huge goal. The video below allows you to enjoy the goal from the away end at Borussia Park!
What do you think were City’s best goals in the month of September? Let us know by commenting, or tweeting us @ReadManCity. Here’s to a good October with a certain Manchester derby on the horizon!
