Croatia
Indonesia
Nigeria
South Africa

Manchester City

sportsmole.co.uk, 9 September 2021, 12:18
Pep Guardiola will welcome back the 16 first-team players to his Manchester City side who have been representing their country during September's international break, as well as keeping an eye on three young players currently out on loan.

Seventeen of those players were spread out across Europe, while Riyad Mahrez and Zack Steffen travelled to Africa and Central America respectively.

Here, Sports Mole round up which City players were in action for their respective nations and how they fared on international duty.

England: Kyle Walker, John Stones, Raheem Sterling, Jack Grealish

Results:

September 2: Hungary 0-4 England - World Cup qualifier (Ferenc Puskas Stadium, Budapest)

September 5: England 4-0 Andorra - World Cup qualifier (Wembley Stadium, London)

September 8: Poland 1-1 England - World Cup qualifier (Stadion Narodowy, Warsaw)

All four players started away in Hungary, with Grealish - who provided an assist for Declan Rice's goal - the only City representative who was brought off in the final few minutes.

Sterling managed to break the deadlock in Budapest, tapping in his 18th international goal, while Stones and Walker helped the Three Lions keep a clean sheet.

Against Andorra, Stones, Walker and Sterling were all unused substitutes, while Grealish was brought on in the 62nd minute.

All four players then played the full 90 minutes against Poland, though England were unable to maintain their 100% record in qualifying, conceding a stoppage-time equaliser in Warsaw.

Portugal: Joao Cancelo, Ruben Dias, Bernardo Silva

Results:

September 1: Portugal 2-1 Republic of Ireland - World Cup qualifier (Estadio Algarve, Almancil)

September 4: Qatar 1-3 Portugal - Friendly (Nagyerdei Stadion, Debrecen)

September 7: Azerbaijan 0-3 Portugal - World Cup qualifier (Baku Olympic Stadium, Baku)

Dias was the only City representative who featured in all three international matches, starting against the Republic of Ireland and Azerbaijan as well as coming off the bench in the 68th minute against Qatar.

Cancelo and Silva, meanwhile, were rested against Qatar but started both World Cup qualifiers, with the latter scoring an exquisite volley from a tight angle to open the scoring against Azerbaijan.

Spain: Aymeric Laporte, Rodri, Ferran Torres

Results:

September 1: Sweden 2-1 Spain - World Cup qualifier (Friends Arena, Stockholm)

September 5: Spain 4-0 Georgia - World Cup qualifier (Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz)

September 8: Kosovo 0-2 Spain - World Cup qualifier (Fadil Vokrri Stadium, Pristina City)

City pair Laporte and Torres started in all three internationals this month, while Rodri only featured for five minutes as a substitute in the defeat to Sweden.

Laporte helped the Spanish backline keep two clean sheets in their final two matches, while Torres carried his goalscoring form at club level onto the international scene, finding the net against Georgia and Kosovo.

Germany: Ilkay Gundogan

Results:

September 2: Liechtenstein 0-2 Germany - World Cup qualifier (AFG Arena, St Gallen)

September 5: Germany 6-0 Armenia - World Cup qualifier (Mercedes-Benz Arena, Stuttgart)

September 8: Iceland 0-4 Germany - World Cup qualifier (Laugardalsvollur, Reykjavik)

Gundogan featured in all three international matches this month, passing the 50-cap milestone for the Germans, who enjoyed comfortable World Cup qualification victories.

The 30-year-old played in a deep-lying midfield role from the start against Liechtenstein and also when he came on for the final half an hour against Armenia, before starting in a more advanced midfield role away in Reykjavik.

Netherlands: Nathan Ake

Results:

September 1: Norway 1-1 Netherlands - World Cup qualifier (Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo)

September 4: Netherlands 4-0 Montenegro - World Cup qualifier (Philips Stadion, Eindhoven)

September 7: Netherlands 6-1 Turkey - World Cup qualifier (Amsterdam ArenA, Amsterdam)

Ake was an unused substitute for the first two matches, however the 26-year-old then left the national team's training camp on Monday and returned to Manchester for personal reasons. It remains to be seen whether he will be available for Man City's fixture against Leicester City on Saturday.

Ukraine: Oleksandr Zinchenko

Results:

September 1: Kazakhstan 2-2 Ukraine - World Cup qualifier (Astana Arena, Nur-Sultan)

September 4: Ukraine 1-1 France - World Cup qualifier (NSC Olimpiyskiy, Kiev)

September 8: Czech Republic 1-1 Ukraine - Friendly (Doosan Arena, Plzen)

Zinchenko once again played in a central midfield position for his national side, as opposed to his usual City role at left-back.

The 24-year-old played the full 90 minutes against Kazakhstan but was shown a yellow card midway through the second half, which forced him to miss their clash with France due to suspension.

Zinchenko returned to the starting lineup against the Czech Republic, though he was unable to help Ukraine claim a victory during this month's international break.

Algeria: Riyad Mahrez

Results:

September 2: Algeria 8-0 Djibouti - World Cup qualifier (Stade Mustapha Tchaker, Blida)

September 7: Burkina Faso 1-1 Algeria - World Cup qualifier (Stade de Marrakech, Marrakech)

Mahrez, who captained his national side and played the full 90 minutes in both qualifiers, scored the seventh goal in Algeria's 8-0 thrashing of Djibouti.

The 30-year-old and his teammates then had to settle for a point against Burkina Faso, in a game played in Marrakesh due to coronavirus safety precautions.

USA: Zack Steffen

Results:

September 3: El Salvador 0-0 USA - World Cup qualifier (Estadio Cuscatlan, San Salvador)

September 6: USA 1-1 Canada - World Cup qualifier (Nissan Stadium, Nashville)

Steffen was named in USA's 25-man squad for this month's qualifiers, however he was unable to feature after testing positive for coronavirus. As a result, the 26-year-old will miss Man City's Premier League clash against Leicester this weekend.

England Under-21s: Cole Palmer, Tommy Doyle (on loan at Hamburg), Taylor Harwood-Bellis (on loan at Anderlecht)

Results:

September 7: England Under-21s 2-0 Kosovo Under-21s - Euro 2023 qualifier (Stadium MK, Milton Keynes)

England's first fixture was due to be against Romania on September 3, however it was cancelled after two positive coronavirus tests among the squad and coaching staff.

However, the Young Lions were able to play against Kosovo with all three of City's representatives making their international debuts at this level.

Harwood-Bellis played the full 90 minutes at centre-back and Doyle came on as a late substitute in midfield, but the star of the show was Palmer, who scored a stunning solo effort to double England's lead in Milton Keynes.

Republic of Ireland: Gavin Bazunu (on loan at Shamrock Rovers)

Results:

September 1: Portugal 2-1 Republic of Ireland - World Cup qualifier (Estadio Algarve, Almancil)

September 4: Republic of Ireland 1-1 Azerbaijan - World Cup qualifier (Aviva Stadium, Dublin)

September 7: Republic of Ireland 1-1 Serbia - World Cup qualifier (Aviva Stadium, Dublin)

Nineteen-year-old Bazunu has claimed the number one jersey under Republic of Ireland manager Stephen Kenny and he started in all three qualifiers this month.

The Dublin-born goalkeeper was unable to keep a clean sheet, though a memorable moment for him will have been his penalty save from none other than Cristiano Ronaldo against Portugal.

Top News

23 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United transfer target Randal Kolo Muani is very likely to leave Paris Saint-Germain in the January transfer window, according to reports. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester City have reportedly set their sights on West Ham United attacker Mohammed Kudus, with Pep Guardiola keen to strengthen his struggling squad. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United are reportedly set to rival Arsenal for the signature of Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic in the summer of 2025. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk The final Premier League gameweek before Christmas appropriately served up some crackers, including a festive feast of goals in North London, where Liverpool ran riot in an exhilarating 6-3 win over Tottenham Hotspur. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Even when the pulse settled a little after this compellingspectacle it was still difficult to know quite where to start todissect this nine-goal thriller. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Ange Postecoglou cut an irritated figure as he claimed he's going to stop answering questions about Tottenham's tactics. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Tottenham Hotspur have supposedly expressed an interest in signing Borussia Dortmund attacker Julian Brandt next month. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool's Mohamed Salah refused to give anything away when asked whether he could break Ian Rush's all-time goalscoring record after the Reds' remarkable 6-3 win over Tottenham Hotspur. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool's astonishing 6-3 Premier League win over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday evening saw a multitude of records and achievements surpassed, as the Reds moved four points clear at the top of the table. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Al-Ahli have reportedly emerged as the favourites to sign Marcus Rashford, with the Manchester United attacker widely expected to be on the move during the January transfer window. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Everton have become surprise leaders in one statistic across Europe thanks to their draw at home to Chelsea. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Liverpool will spend Christmas Day four points clear at the top of the Premier League table thanks to a breathtaking 6-3 win over Tottenham Hotspur in North London. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Kylian Mbappe struck a landmark effort to put himself firmly among Real Madrid's elite. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has insisted that he is "absolutely happy" with his side's goalless draw at Everton on Sunday. 22 December 2024 talksport.com If you thought Mohamed Salah couldn't set yet another record, think again. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk For a second time in successive Gulf Cup competitions, The United Arab Emirates and Kuwait will meet in the group stage, with this upcoming game taking place on Tuesday at Jaber Al-Amad International Stadium in Kuwait City. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Bayer Leverkusen defender Jeremie Frimpong is supposedly not a 'concrete target' for Liverpool amid speculation over Trent Alexander-Arnold's future. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Real Madrid moved into second spot in the La Liga table courtesy of a 4-2 success over Sevilla in Sunday afternoon's contest at Bernabeu, with Los Blancos ending 2024 on a high note. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Oman and Qatar will compete in the Gulf Cup for the first time in over a decade on Tuesday at Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium, each seeking their first victory in this edition of the tournament. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Barcelona have reportedly received offers from three clubs for defender Eric Garcia, but the player is pushing against a move away from Catalonia during the January transfer window. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United have broken two unwanted club Premier League records in their humiliating 3-0 home defeat to Bournemouth. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk New Wolverhampton Wanderers' boss Vitor Pereira earned three points when his side comfortably beat Ruud van Nistelrooy's Leicester City 3-0 away from home on Sunday afternoon in the Premier League. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Aaron Ramsdale was spotted wearing a modified goalkeeper glove in Southampton's Premier League clash at Fulham. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Chelsea squandered the chance to go top of the Premier League table for a couple of hours as Everton held the Blues to a goalless stalemate at Goodison Park. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Djed Spence has been named in the Tottenham Hotspur starting XI for their Premier League clash with Liverpool, while Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo get the nod up front for the visitors. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Manchester United were beaten 3-0 by Bournemouth in a defeat that saw Ruben Amorim's side achieve an unwanted record. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Gary Neville believes that Ruben Amorim will allow Marcus Rashford to leave Manchester United for the sake of 'himself and the club'. 22 December 2024 talksport.com Pep Guardiola isn't immune from the sack at Manchester City having continued their unprecedented and dismal run of form. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Manchester United have reportedly earmarked Leeds United shot-stopper Illan Meslier as one of two goalkeeper targets ahead of the January transfer window. 22 December 2024 sportsmole.co.uk Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly identified Burnley's James Trafford as their top transfer target for the January transfer window.