Foden hat-trick helps Manchester City cut through noise and crush AEK Athens

Phil Foden shouted the loudest on a quiet night at the Etihad Stadium, announcing his personal return to form with an instinctive hat-trick as Manchester City dispatched AEK Athens with little fuss. Enzo Maresca had called for City to make their own noise amid the cacophony around the club but a businesslike victory in front of 20,000 fewer than watched the weekend’s win over Ipswich was required to get their Champions League back on track after suffering at the hands of Paris Saint-Germain.

Those in attendance, officially 40,042 but that felt optimistic, saw Foden shine on the right wing and as a central striker, showing there is life without Erling Haaland, who watched from the bench. Admittedly, the opposition were not a match for the Premier League side, whose other goals came from Elliot Anderson and Rayan Cherki. Stavros Pilios’s consolation was more a reward for the boisterous fans in yellow and black, who created the atmosphere, than for the overall efforts of the visitors.

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Foden has endured a difficult time; Saturday’s goal was his first since mid-December. He has spent much of the season watching on from the sidelines, some of that absence self-inflicted after getting sent off for kicking out in frustration in the Manchester derby. He was tightly wound at that point but there is a growing freedom to his game, flitting between roles when required with devastating effect.

“Slowly but surely,” Foden said of getting back to his best. “Still got a long way to go, but I am going in the right direction. Scoring along the way definitely helps. I want to keep working hard and keep being the best I can for the manager and the team. When I changed into that false 9 role, I enjoyed it a lot. Really enjoyed that role tonight.”

Maresca took the calculated risk of eight changes, although that did mean a return to the starting lineup for Enzo Fernández and Anderson while Haaland was only there in case of emergency. His replacement, with senior options lacking, was the 17-year-old academy graduate, Floyd Samba, whose only other senior football came in a Carabao Cup win against Norwich, when he scored twice on debut.

The game had not captured the imagination with the stands having huge gaps of blue, which is understandable amid the constant churn of fixtures for City and the cost of following the club. AEK was seen by many fans as a game that could be missed, in expectation of a simple victory over a team lacking global superstars. The visiting supporters were far more animated, filling a corner of the ground over three tiers where they created a party from two hours before kick-off. “Our fans are amazing,” Marko Nikolic, the AEK head coach, said.

Inspiration was required from those on the pitch with the home faithful subdued, and it was provided in the 12th minute by Fernández clipping a free-kick on to the bar. Anderson followed up to whack the rebound into an empty net. The celebrations lacked enthusiasm, acknowledged with a nod of approval.

AEK did what they could to resist but City were able to take control, passing the ball around with ease and holding AEK at arm’s length, while Foden and Cherki tried to work their fleet-footed magic in tight spaces. Eventually the calmness in the final third was rewarded when Foden finished after neat work on the right from Rico Lewis, as the two academy products combined. The full-back has struggled for minutes in recent times and almost left the club 16 months ago but showed he can provide something as an attacking threat from defence.

Pilios thrashed home but natural order was soon restored by Cherki, a neat trick inside the box and a precise shot into the corner did the rest. It was an occasion for the maverick Frenchman to be a leader, making the difference in critical moments and he offered evidence of his capabilities with the finish, creating breathing space in the process.

If the plan was to test life without Haaland, the loss of Antoine Semenyo to injury for eight weeks created a problem for Maresca. Samba’s deployment ranked somewhere between plan C and D but the teenager was an adept decoy, allowing the more experienced around him to show off their repertoire.

City started to showboat as AEK realised resistance was futile. Cherki knocked it long for Lewis to control into the path of Foden, who provided a sublime first-time finish into the top corner from the edge of the box. The exceptional goals were racking up on what felt like an otherwise mundane night.

On a positive night for City’s academy, Ryan McAidoo came off the bench to send in a perfect cross for Foden to complete his treble with a striker’s instinct, earning the biggest cheer of the night. Being able to celebrate one of their own is important for City fans, especially with so many unknowns.

“I consider him one of the best English players but for different reasons in the last two-three years, he was not good enough – but I know how good he is,” Maresca said. “We are just trying to help him because we are sure that he’s going to help us this season.”