Manchester City‘s two England internationals endured a rollercoaster evening at Wembley on Saturday, with Marc Guehi and Nico O’Reilly got in trouble and were both punished for their errors.
Spain came from behind to beat Thomas Tuchel’s side, just hours after news broke that the City had been found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges levelled against it by the Premier League.
Guehi’s early slip lets Yamal in
The night could hardly have started worse for Guehi. Inside two minutes, the City defender was caught in possession close to his own penalty area. Having turned back towards goal, he was dispossessed by Lamine Yamal, who slotted past James Trafford to put the world champions ahead almost before the crowd had settled into their seats.
Guehi shook off the setback to stay on the pitch until the 89th minute, when he was withdrawn for Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite, and was booked in between times.
O’Reilly error hands Spain their leveller
O’Reilly, for his part, had a far more eventful evening at the other end of the pitch too. The young full-back broke down the left before whipping in the cross from which Harry Kane, via a touch off Spain defender Marc Cucurella, put England back in front shortly before half-time.
That contribution was undone on the hour when O’Reilly misplaced a pass inside his own half, gifting possession straight back to Spain. The visitors broke quickly through substitute Alex Baena, who was afforded space on the edge of the box and found the net to make it 2-2.
The City academy graduate played the full 90 minutes despite the mistake and was shown a yellow card in the 67th minute, with Guehi following him into referee’s notebook two minutes later.
Meanwhile, the timing of both errors raised questions over whether concentration levels among City’s contingent had been affected by developments off the pitch.
Hours earlier, reports had emerged that an independent panel had found City guilty of 114 of the 115 charges brought against them by the Premier League, relating to alleged financial breaches between 2009 and 2018. The club, which has consistently denied wrongdoing, is expected to appeal, with sanctions yet to be determined.
Thomas Tuchel speaks on possible distraction during the match
Speaking after the match, England manager Thomas Tuchel addressed the timing of the news but was careful to draw a line between its impact on him and on his City players.
“It’s not a distraction for me; I imagine it can affect the City players,” he said.
“I will not comment on it; I think there’s an ongoing investigation about it. I didn’t make it a topic among my discussions with the players.”
The German has previously kept a tight rein on distractions within his squad and appeared keen to avoid being drawn further on a case that remains, in his words, ongoing.
Attention will now turn quickly to Tuesday, when England travel to Prague to face Czechia, with City’s trio likely to again feature prominently.
