Saga J Grealish goal against Barcelona where denied,as Barcelona where announced the winer 1-2

Saga J Grealish goal against Barcelona where denied,as Barcelona where announced the winer 1-2

Jack Grealish is back with a vengeance but what’s up with Ederson?! Winners and losers as Barcelona beat Man City on penalties after pre-season draw in positive debut for Hansi Flick

Winners & Losers

Manchester City

Manchester City vs Barcelona

Barcelona

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The winger produced his best display for months in a hugely entertaining friendly between the Citizens and the Catalans in Orlando

Jack Grealish had pledged to make up for his struggles last season by hitting the ground running ahead of Manchester City’s new campaign and he was true to his word, producing a stunning display in a thrilling 2-2 draw with Barcelona.

The pre-season friendly was heavily delayed as thunder and lightning hit Orlando and Grealish provided the electricity to help City twice come from behind against young but daring Barca side who were playing their first game under Hansi Flick.

The German coach was missing most of Barca’s regulars but watched Pau Victor give his side the lead midway through the first half after a flowing passing move. City’s 19-year-old Nico O’Reilly equalised with the help of Grealish but Barca came right back at Pep Guardiola’s side, with Pablo Torre striking again before the break.

Torre was aided by some sloppy goalkeeping from Ederson, who is having a nightmare US tour which could prove to be his final act in a City shirt. Grealish took matters into his own hands to equalise in the second half, scoring for the first time since December.

The game had to be settled on penalties, where Barca won 4-1 after Kalvin Phillips and Jacob Wright had squandered their spot-kicks. It means City are still without a win three games into their jaunt around the states. These tours are less about results and more about picking up momentum, however, and if Grealish can continue to replicate the spark he offered here, it will have been time well spent.

GOAL breaks down the winners & losers from the Camping World Stadium…

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Jack Grealish Man CityGetty

WINNER: Jack Grealish

Grealish went into this game with a point to prove after flat individual performances against Celtic and Milan and it was a case of third-time lucky as he was City’s most impressive player on the night.

The £100m ($128m) man made a strong start to the game with a blistering early move after linking up with Kalvin Phillips, albeit missing the target. He remained determined to have an impact and helped set up the first equaliser by patiently holding the ball up and laying it off to Josko Gvardiol, who then teed up O’Reilly.

Grealish, who wore the captain’s armband in the second half, completed his resurgent performance by scoring City’s second, linking up with Mateo Kovacic before thrashing the ball into the far corner. When he was eventually taken off he received an enthusiastic pat on the back from Guardiola, who had warned him that he would not tolerate a repeat of last season. Grealish appears to have taken his manager’s advice on board.

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Erling Haaland Man CityGetty

LOSER: Ghost goal farce

VAR might not be universally popular among football fans but the need for goal-line technology at all levels was underlined when Haaland was denied a clear goal in the first half.

The striker slid in to meet Oscar Bobb’s cross and his shot squirmed under the arms of Barcelona goalkeeper Inaki Pena, clearly crossing the line. MLS referee Timothy Ford did not notice that the ball had crossed the line but he had no help from his fellow officials as there was no VAR and no goalline technology.

Barcelona have first-hand experience of the importance of goalline technology, which remarkably still does not exist in La Liga. Its absence led to Lamine Yamal being denied a goal against Real Madrid in last season’s Clasico, with huge ramifications on the title race. And several years previously, Messi was denied a goal against Valencia due to the lack of the technology.

City should be grateful that the technology has been in use in the Premier League since 2013 and that such a flagrant error only occurred in season and not in a competitive game.

Pep Guardiola Hansi FlickGetty

WINNER: Hansi Flick

This was Flick’s first game in charge of Barcelona and he would have been pretty pleased with the result and performance in his dugout debut with the Catalans.

Yes, his side gave away the lead twice, but they were fielding a second string team mostly consisting of academy players and started with far less experience than their opponents. The most experienced Barca player to start the game was Clement Lenglet, although the cavalry arrived in second half, with Robert Lewandowski and Alejandro Balde coming on.

Despite missing so many regulars due to players still being on their holidays after the Euros and Copa America, this fledgling Barca side played with real confidence and style, serving up exciting, flowing football that was rarely seen last season under Xavi Hernandez.

Flick, who masterminded Bayern Munich’s 8-2 demolition of Barca in 2020, was hired at the expense of club legend Xavi to make the team more exciting and if this performance is anything to go by, it could prove to be a wise appointment.

Ederson Manchester City 2023-24Getty

LOSER: Ederson

This tour could prove to be Ederson’s last stand for City as he edges towards a move to the Saudi Pro League. And that would be a real shame because he would not be going out on a high.

The Brazilian has conceded five goals in City’s three games in the States despite just playing 45 minutes on each occasion. He made two costly errors in the last match against AC Milan and he was poor again here, softly letting Pablo Torre’s strike slip through his hand right before half-time.

His concentration and his footwork had been sloppy before then and the goal was another demonstration of his tendency to concede soft goals, often the opponents’ first attempt on target. Pep Guardiola has insisted he does not want Ederson to leave the club, but these latest performances might convince him otherwise.

WINNER: The City brand

Manchester City’s in-house broadcast team were beaming with pride as they looked out at the crowd at the Camping World stadium and saw an overwhelming majority of blue shirts.

Barcelona have long had a big fan base in the States and are particularly popular among Latino communities due to the Lionel Messi effect so the fact that City supporters outnumbered the Blaugranas in Orlando was particularly impressive.

It was also the latest demonstration of the club’s booming popularity in the states, the result of their effort to appeal to the next generation of supporters in the country and position themselves as a lifestyle brand as well as a serial-winning football team.

Barcelona Man City weather warningGetty

LOSER: Weather delays

The match was delayed by one hour and 20 minutes due to thunder and lightning storms in Orlando. It was to the credit of the supporters that the stadium was still full by the time the game finally kicked off, especially as most of the ground was uncovered.

Matches are more commonly disrupted in the States than in England and it seems likely there will be more delays and potential postponements in next year’s Club World Cup on the east coast and in the 2026 World Cup. The safety of spectators must be prioritised but organisers might have to tweak the current protocol, whereby there is an extra half-hour delay each time lightning strikes within eight miles of the stadium.

Although the delay did not end up spoiling this hugely entertaining game, repeat incidents could cause havoc at the major events in 2025