Five Things Learned: Manchester City 3-2 Fulham (Premier League) | OneFootball

Manchester City edged Fulham at home despite a relatively disjointed performance thanks to a spotlight-stealing display from Mateo Kovacic.

Pep Guardiola’s side were a long way from their best for much of the game, with the visitors taking the lead and perhaps unlucky not to have scored more than two, having been denied by multiple fine Ederson saves.

Substitute Jeremy Doku added to Mateo Kovacic’s brace to give the reigning Premier League champions enough daylight to seal all three points, but Pep Guardiola will undoubtedly have a few things to work on in training over the international break.

The two-week respite from club fixtures and wider first-team duties will come to an end when Manchester City visit Wolves later this month, as the Molineux outfit have proven something of a bogey team in recent years.

Before then, and ahead of a two-week break from club action, here are the Five Things We Learned from Manchester City’s return to winning ways in the top-flight as they defeated Fulham 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium!

Mateo Kovacic adds goals to his game

Mateo Kovacic has been many things throughout his impressive career, but a regular goalscorer isn’t one. While his talent in so many other areas is impossible to deny, the Croatian has scored fewer than 40 senior goals since turning pro – hardly a prolific marksman.

However, there was a time when much of the same could be said of Ilkay Gundogan. It wasn’t until the German had spent some time playing under Pep Guardiola that his potential as a key source of goals was unlocked.

Against Fulham, we saw some encouraging signs that Mateo Kovacic could undergo the same transformation, and offer a new dimension to the Manchester City attacking format that could leave some opposition stumped.

His first – the equaliser – was a masterclass in arriving inside the box at the right time, and his second really highlighted the former Real Madrid and Chelsea midfielder’s composure in front of goal.

We also cannot forget his decisive strike on the league’s opening day against his former side. Goals from anyone not named Erling Haaland have been a serious worry so far this season – but could Mateo Kovacic be an unlikely solution?

Jeremy Doku makes a difference

Speaking of goals not scored by our talismanic Norwegian, Jeremy Doku is another with huge potential to chip in – particularly crucial while the likes of Kevin de Bruyne and Rodri remain unavailable.

Like almost any young winger, the Belgian tends to blow hot and cold when it comes to that final ball. However, goal contributions against Watford and Slovan Bratislava have positioned him as one of the club’s best attackers in recent weeks and he kept that form going.

In fact, his strike to extend Manchester City’s lead was one of Doku’s finest moments at the club so far, and reminiscent of another rapid young winger who took his talent to another level under Pep Guardiola – Leroy Sané.

If Jeremy Doku can keep finding the net on a more regular basis, we could soon be talking about him as one of the league’s best wingers. There’s no question that the natural talent is already there.

Defensive disarray

For all Pep Guardiola’s connotations of attacking, possession-based football, strangling the opponent with passes and scoring more goals than anyone else, he is in many ways a deeply defensive coach.

His consistently low ratio of goals conceded per game (let’s ignore his first season at Manchester City) has been a source of pride for his whole career, and fairly so. But that solidity has been lacking at times this season, never more so than against Fulham.

Adama Traore, a man who has consistently tormented Manchester City defences for many years, got in behind Pep Guardiola’s backline multiple times and could easily have added to the goals scored by Andreas Pereira and Rodrigo Muniz.

The most obvious reason why City’s defence has been struggling of late is of course the lack of Rodri in midfield; Kevin de Bruyne’s absence is also giving opponents quite a bit less to worry about, giving them more freedom to carve out attacks of their own.

Whatever the root cause, Pep Guardiola will want to address the deficiency quickly – the man who proved the hero against Fulham cannot be expected to bail his side out every week…

Ederson reminds us what he’s capable of

It’s a thankless job being a goalkeeper in this team.

While someone like Alisson is undeniably an exceptional shot-stopper in 1v1 situations, it helps his cause that Liverpool went through a long period of conceding 1v1 chances at least once a game, giving the Brazilian a platform to really show off what he can do.

Ederson, by contrast, sometimes goes entire matches without needing to make a save.

Against Fulham, City’s first-choice got his chance to shine multiple times – and delivered with aplomb. For a man who has received probably more than his fair share of stick for his shot-stopping, his latest outing was a timely reminder of what he can do when he’s on song.

With Rodri out for the rest of the year, we are likely to need him to keep producing the goods more than usual this season.

Josko Gvardiol’s steely showing

Lastly, while he understandably wasn’t beating Mateo Kovacic or Ederson to the Man of the Match award, Josko Gvardiol’s performance at the back against Fulham deserves to be singled out for praise.

We talk so much about what the young defender can do with his feet – and for good reason. Whether he’s scoring striker-esque finishes or showing off an impressive passing range, he’s a unicorn of a player, comfortable in both boxes and likely to only get better.

It’s a stereotype that the truly exceptional ball-playing defenders can be a bit dodgy at actual defending, but Josko Gvardiol reminded everyone that that’s not the case with his steely showing against the Cottagers.

The Croatian is quickly evolving into one of Manchester City’s best players and his sheer potential is looking more exciting by the day.