Man City vs Aston Villa player ratings as Bernardo Silva sends City top with late breakthrough

Manchester City 2-0 Aston Villa: Bernardo Silva hits a late goal which saw Dean Smith sent-off for protesting at no offside being given, before a late penalty added gloss

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Manchester City and Aston Villa fought out a tremendous Premier League clash in the rain on Wednesday night which finished 2-0 to the hosts, sending them top.

Bernardo Silva had a chance just seconds after kick-off, but his close-range finish was saved. Ross Barkley then had a chance to set Villa through three on two, only to pass straight to a defender.

The first half was an open encounter, with Phil Foden and Jack Grealish the protagonists for either side whenever they were found in space and embarked on a dribble - and although City definitely had more of the ball after the break, it was still end-to-end to an extent.

READ MORE: Premier League fixtures and table - all matches by date and kick-off time

Bertrand Traore almost scored a great solo goal, Joao Cancelo hit the bar and Ilkay Gundogan twice missed from fewer than five yards out, but both goalkeepers also made good saves - until Bernardo Silva smashed one in from range after Tyrone Mings lost the ball and Gundogan netted a late penalty.

Here are the player ratings from the game at the Etihad Stadium.

Man City

Ederson - 7. Good handling in wet conditions on more than one occasion.

Kyle Walker - 6. Injured early on and replaced.

Ruben Dias - 8. Solid work against the counter-attacks, economical as ever with the ball. Brilliant clearance inside his six-yard box.

John Stones - 6. Covered well a few times although was caught upfield on the counters, too.

Joao Cancelo - 8. So impressive on either side. Almost scored a great goal, nearly set up a few too.

Rodri - 7. Is never caught out of position or in possession. Keeps the team flowing and finds the spaces between the lines.

Ilkay Gundogan - 7. Made himself dangerous with his runs from deep but should have scored at least once before his spot-kick.

Bernardo Silva - 8. Should have scored early on. Spent a lot of time in a centre-forward area and linked play extremely well, then hammered in the opener at last.

Kevin De Bruyne - 8. Played just over an hour and gave ample further evidence of his world-class passing ability.

Raheem Sterling - 6. Started brightly but didn’t beat the full-back too often and faded somewhat.

Phil Foden - 7. Created so many openings and always looked a danger, but the end product was lacking at times. 

Aston Villa

Emi Martinez - 7. Brilliant save from a yard out just two minutes in. His kicking out was excellent and a feature of the counter-attacks.

Matty Cash - 6. Was given a very tough night but kept going and was an outlet when possible.

Ezri Konsa - 8. Made a host of interceptions and blocks, gradually getting deeper into the penalty box.

Tyrone Mings - 6. Similarly committed and well-positioned to make innumerable blocks and clearances - but made the decisive error to cost a goal.

Matt Targett - 8. Good covering and stopped Sterling’s dribbles more than once. Some fantastic slide tackles across the wet pitch.

Douglas Luiz - 6. Very hard-working but a couple of cynical fouls and missed passes too. One fine strike tested Ederson.

John McGinn - 8. Composed on the ball and hard-running as his side came under increasing pressure.

Ross Barkley - 5. Spurned an unreal chance to tee up Grealish. Lost possession cheaply. Took a couple of weak shots.

Bertrand Traore - 7. Moments of individual genius mixed with a very frustrating one-footed approach inside the box. Tired after the break.

Jack Grealish - 7. On the ball was always looking to create and dribble, linking well with Watkins.

Oli Watkins - 7. A non-stop runner and a creator of chances rather than getting many himself.