Mixed performance: Khusanov’s showing in City’s FA Cup victory over Bournemouth

On March 30, Manchester City faced Bournemouth in the FA Cup quarterfinals. Uzbek national team player Abdukodir Khusanov, who had recently participated in challenging World Cup qualifying matches, including a heated game against Kyrgyzstan in Tashkent on March 20, returned to England via Tehran-Vienna-Manchester after playing against Iran. His performance in City’s lineup against Bournemouth was a mixed one.

In the first half, Khusanov and his teammates struggled. Erling Haaland missed a penalty in the 14th minute, and Bournemouth capitalized on the momentum, scoring in the 21st minute through Ederson’s goal.

In the 37th minute, Khusanov committed a foul and was cautioned with a yellow card by the referee. As a result, Khusanov was substituted at the start of the second half for 20-year-old Niko O’Reilly. O’Reilly made a remarkable impact, setting up two assists that enabled City forwards Erling Haaland and Omar Marmush to score, turning the game in City’s favor. Ultimately, City secured a narrow victory and advanced to the semifinals.

As usual, “SofaScore,” a popular football analytics portal, evaluated the players’ performances based on their actions and game involvement. Despite playing only one half and receiving a yellow card, Khusanov was rated the lowest among City’s defenders, with a score of 6.5.

Manchester City’s next match will be against Leicester in the Premier League on April 2 at the Etihad Stadium. The game is scheduled to start at 11:45 PM Tashkent time.