In a move typical of Manchester City during the reign of Pep Gaurdiola, the Premier League champions cut through their Championship opposition with ease. In truth, the hosts could have been out of sight by the time Raheem Sterling scored the opening goal; striker Gabriel Jesus had three golden opportunities to open the scoring, but he failed to do so by virtue of hitting the post once and firing wide twice.
Nevertheless, the break through came just before the quarter of an hour mark. After driving down the left hand side, Sterling opted to cut back onto his right foot and lay the ball off to the returning Kevin De Bruyne. The Englishman then continued his pursuit forward by making a dangeorus run through the two banks of Rotherham defenders. True to form, team mate De Bruyne picked out Sterling with a marvellous reverse pass, to see the Englishman just six yards from goal.
From then, all credit should go to Sterling. In seasons past, the forward may have panicked in such a situation. Yet he demonstrated just how much he has progressed under the tutelage of manager Pep Guardiola, by keeping his composure, side stepping two defenders and arcing the ball into the far bottom corner of the net.
January 6, 2019