O’Reilly scores brace as City battle beat Plymouth to enter FA Cup QF
Manchester, March 2 (IANS/WISHAVWARTA) Nico O’Reilly scored a brace as Manchester City came from behind to beat Plymouth Argyle 3-1 in the fifth round of the FA Cup to be move into the quarterfinals of the competition for the seventh successive season.
Captain Kevin De Bruyne rounded off the win by tapping home the third as the game entered stoppage time.
O’Reilly’s performance marked his second and third goals in senior football for City after opening his account against Salford City in January.
City came the closest to scoring first against Plymouth Argyle after 28 minutes when Ilkay Gundogan’s curling effort hit the post after connecting with Jack Grealish’s cross from the left, FA Cup reports.
Having been on the back foot for much of the first half, the Championship side then took the lead ten minutes later when Ukrainian defender Maksym Talovierov headed home from close range from Matthew Sorinola’s corner.
Last year’s finalists levelled proceedings in first-half stoppage time when 19-year-old Nico O’Reilly met Kevin De Bruyne’s free-kick with a glancing header that beat Conor Hazard.
Pep Guardiola’s side pressed for a second goal after half time and went close in the 75th minute when Erling Haaland saw his attempt thwarted by Hazard, with Bernado Silva unable to convert the follow up.
However, O’Reilly gave the hosts the lead a minute later with his second headed goal of the game, connecting with Phil Foden’s corner at the back post.
De Bruyne added a third late on, meeting Haaland’s pass across the six-yard box, to ensure the seven-time winners of the competition progressed to the quarter finals for the seventh consecutive season.
“I don’t take for granted the difficulty when you play an incredibly organised team. I’m not surprised what they did against Liverpool. It was difficult to challenge them because they are incredibly organised defensively. I don’t take for granted how good we have done many, many things,” Guardiola said about the win.
“Every step is getting better. Many good things happened. Jack played really good. Vitor played really good. All of them. Nico. We had a lot of possession with patience because they want to make transitions. Really pleased for the performance,” he added.
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