Owen Hargreaves hails Man City's defence after 3-0 win over Bayern

‘THAT is how you win this competition’: Owen Hargreaves hails Man City’s defence after their 3-0 Champions League victory over Bayern Munich… as Rio Ferdinand labels the back four’s performance ‘phenomenal’

• Manchester City beat Bayern Munich 3-0 in the Champions League on Tuesday
• City looked dangerous in attack, but their defensive work also stood out
• Owen Hargreaves believes they now have the blueprint to win the competition 

Owen Hargreaves believes Manchester City have the tools to go all the way in the Champions League after their impressive defensive showing in their 3-0 victory over Bayern Munich on Tuesday night.

Rodri, Bernardo Silva and Erling Haaland all got on the scoresheet to give City a commanding lead heading into next week’s second leg in Munich. But Pep Guardiola’s men were challenged for long periods and needed to stand firm at the back.

John Stones, Manuel Akanji, Ruben Dias and Nathan Ake delivered stellar displays, while Ederson was also alert on a number of occasions to keep out former City forward Leroy Sane.

City are often praised for their attacking play, but Hargreaves was particularly complimentary about their defending following their win at the Etihad Stadium.

‘That is how you win this competition. Defensively, that was a completely different City. Flawless,’ Hargreaves told BT Sport afterwards.

Manuel Akanji (centre) and John Stones (right) helped Man City keep a clean sheet against Bayern Munich despite being put under significant pressure

Owen Hargreaves was very impressed with how City defended throughout the match

Guardiola has tested a new system in recent weeks that has seen Stones move into midfield when City have possession, and it has brought a greater balance to the side.

Hargreaves was full of praise for the Spanish coach for finding a formation that gets the very best out of his team defensively and going forwards.

‘I think you have to credit Pep. The fact that they can defend that way on their own, now rather than having the false nine they create the overload in midfield, but it is only able with Ake and Akanji. Pep is so smart at finding the solutions,’ Hargreaves added.

Fellow pundit Rio Ferdinand was equally impressed with City at the back, and felt every member of the defence played their part in the dominant win.

Ruben Dias also made a number of important blocks and interceptions to keep Bayern at bay

Rio Ferdinand was full of praise for how City’s defence coped with Bayern’s attacking threats

‘I think early on, we spoke about the threats Bayern carried, especially out wide through Coman etc, Akanji and Ake were so convincing,’ Ferdinand said.

‘They said they could go 1 v 1. It is a big difference, as good as they are – they have positives over Cancelo and Zinchenko. These two can do it, and it allows others to have freedom on the pitch. I thought the back four were phenomenal.

‘The back four, Akanji, Ake, wonderful. Dias, the amount of blocks he put in, and Stones with the ball – that platform helps everything else, and they capitalised.

‘Today, we saw City enjoy the element of defending. It is a huge art.’

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