Omar Marmouche’s strong late drive ultimately saw Man City beat Championship side Swansea 3-1 in South Wales and reach the Carabao Cup quarter-finals after a forced comeback.
A well-taken strike from Marmouche with 12 minutes left gave Swans goalkeeper Andy Fisher little chance, and Josep Guardiola’s side finally took the lead, avoiding a penalty shoot-out draw against their increasingly stubborn hosts, with Rayan Cherki clinching a quarter-final clash with Brentford in stoppage time.
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Gonzalo Franco gives Swansea the lead against Man City with a stunning curling shot into the top corner
It’s been almost eight years since Guardiola was released to a lower-league side, and the Swans were dreaming of ending their losing streak when midfielder Gonzalo Franco smashed what would be the goal of the round under the bar less than 12 minutes into the game.
City struggled to find their rhythm with 10 changes to their squad from Sunday’s game against Aston Villa, but quickly stepped up a gear and Rico Luiz’s effort saw Cherki hit the post, but a rusty Abdukkodir Kusanov’s square pass was collected by Merkel Videl, who nearly doubled the home side’s lead.
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Jeremy Doku’s shot takes a brutal deflection from Cameron Burgess and equalizes at Swansea.
Swansea hero Cameron Burgess, who was seen off against Nottingham Forest with his doubles in the third round, was knocked to the ground minutes before the break after sticking his foot out to deflect Jeremy Dok’s shot past a helpless Fisher.
City needed moments like that to find a breakthrough as they struggled to find finishes against a well-organized Swansea side, but in the end it was individual quality that made the difference as Marmouche scored from a great pass from Cherki and they finally took the lead.
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Omar Marmouche leads Manchester City into the lead against Swansea
In stoppage time, Cherki deservedly completed his performance with a goal, evading several Swansea defenders on the edge of the box before slotting into the far corner to put City safely past.
City manager Guardiola paid tribute to the 22-year-old, who has missed most of the season due to injury: “He came in as a 22-year-old, but he has a special, special talent.
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Rayan Cherki’s goal seals Manchester City’s place in the Carabao Cup quarter-finals
“In the final third, his vision, his aggressiveness, his desire for the ball, his character with which he plays is really great.”
Sheehan: We had to be perfect.
Swansea manager Alan Sheehan:
“So many things. After the game, we talked about how this is going to be the best team we’re going to play this year. We need to have belief, confidence and cohesion.”
“You know you’re playing against one of the best teams in the world and you have to do certain things and they did it together. “Certainly we scored the first goal and after that it was one-on-one and it has to be perfect.
“But ultimately I’m incredibly proud of the whole football club.”
Guardiola: Swansea deserve the opening goal
Man City manager Josep Guardiola:
“I’m not frustrated. They played well. We didn’t lack aggression or composure, but they were very aggressive and deserved the goal. But after that we started to settle down more and the second half was great.”
“It’s not easy to attack with 10 players this narrow and deep, but everyone moved and found their positions and in the end we were able to find the goal.”
