Manuel Pellegrini savoured what he deemed Manchester City’s best performance of the season after Yaya Touré provided the inspiration for their 2-0 win at Aston Villa with his first league goal of the campaign. The defending champions had to wait until the 82nd minute to score at Villa Park before Touré and Sergio Agüero clinched the win that took them up to second in the table.
“When we had just eight minutes to finish the game you are a little bit worried but we deserved to win,” Pellegrini said: “We had a lot of clear chances to score. I think we played the best game of the season, complete in all senses with possession, the chances, the way we defend, the intensity [with which] we recover the ball and the way we work.”
Touré endured a summer of speculation after suggesting he wanted to leave the Etihad Stadium before beginning the season with below-par performances following the death of his younger brother, Ibrahim, in June.
But Pellegrini said: “Maybe like any player he can have better games or not so good games but I never had any doubts about him. He has a lot of problem in his private life but he didn’t want to go anywhere. He didn’t have any problems with the club. He will continue to be an important player.”
Touré, whose only previous goal this season was a penalty against Sheffield Wednesday, enjoyed his first league strike since May. “I think it was amazing,” he said. The midfielder admitted he had struggled during a gruelling schedule, adding: “It’s not so easy because you have to play every three days. I’m not a machine, I’m a man, but it’s important to keep things going and I’ll just do my best to win things again this season.”
City will assess the midfielder Fernandinho’s hamstring problem on Sunday after he hobbled off.
