Phil Foden was at his imperious best on Monday evening, scoring a hat-trick as Manchester City hammered AEK Athens 5-1 at the Etihad Stadium. The midfielder, who also set up Rayan Cherki’s fourth-minute contribution to a commanding second half, carried Enzo Maresca’s side to a convincing win that the stats fully back up: City finished with an xG of 2.92 against AEK’s 0.78. Elliot Anderson opened the scoring, Foden added three, Cherki chipped in, and a brief AEK response from Pilios in the 52nd minute was quickly swallowed up by City’s relentless pressure.
Key Moments
- 12′, Anderson breaks the deadlock, finishing to put City ahead with no assist recorded.
- 34′, Foden doubles the lead, converting from a pass by Lewis to make it 2-0 before the break.
- 52′, Pilios pulls one back for AEK Athens, assisted by substitute Zini, to make it 2-1 and briefly inject some tension.
- 57′, Cherki restores the two-goal cushion almost immediately, finishing from a Foden assist to make it 3-1.
- 65′, Foden gets his second of the night, again assisted by Lewis, putting City firmly in control at 4-1.
- 76′, Foden completes his hat-trick, tapping home from a McAidoo assist to seal a 5-1 scoreline.
Tactical Breakdown
Enzo Maresca’s side were largely in cruise control from the opening quarter-hour. Playing in a 4-2-3-1, City dominated possession at 64% and racked up 17 total shots, 13 of them inside the box. Lewis was instrumental from right back, contributing two assists, while the midfield trio of Foden, Anderson, and Cherki created problems AEK had no answer to.
The one moment of vulnerability came early in the second half, when AEK’s half-time double substitution changed the look of their attack. Zini, introduced at the break, assisted Pilios’s 52nd-minute goal to make it 2-1. City responded within five minutes through Cherki, and any hope of an AEK comeback died there. Maresca then rotated freely, bringing off Gvardiol and Fernandez at the 72-minute mark and later withdrawing Ruben Dias at 83, spreading minutes across the squad without disruption to the result.
AEK arrived in Manchester sitting 27th in the UCL standings with three points from two matches, and they were outclassed in virtually every statistical category. Their 11 total shots produced an xG of just 0.78, and they struggled to impose their 4-4-2 against City’s superior pressing and passing structure, completing only 346 passes compared to City’s 635.
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Verdict
The win moves Manchester City to six points from three UEFA Champions League league-stage matches, sitting sixth in the standings and in the top-eight bracket that guarantees automatic qualification to the round of 16 playoffs. AEK Athens remain 27th on three points after three games, outside the qualifying positions. For City, the performance carries a broader significance: Foden delivered the kind of display that headlined outlets from beIN Sports to The Sun, with multiple reports noting he looked ‘back to his best’ after a stop-start period.