A strange football game that was. Despite an evident difference in the quality on Manchester City’s side, Yokohama Marinos managed not only to break the deadlock against the favourites but to have a 2-0 lead against the probably greatest team in the world at the moment.Too bad, however, a match lasts 90, not just 40 minutes, because that would be a massive upset, regardless of the fact it was just another pre-season friendly for the Treble winners.But once the Cityzens got their grip back, things turned upside down. Pep Guardiola lined up a squad of not many regulars, obviously trying to see how much he could achieve without the help of his prime gems like Halaand, De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva, Rodri… and when it didn’t work out so well, to put it mildly, especially in the rusty defensive line which conceded two before the half time – the Spaniard realized it’s time to react.Ken Matsubara scores a goal to extend Yokohama F･Marinos’ lead to 2 in the MEIJI YASUDA J.LEAGUE WORLD CHALLENGE 2023 powered by docomo against Manchester City! ⚽⚽Yokohama F･️Marinos 2 – 0 Manchester City#JLEAGUE #JWC pic.twitter.com/7qTCRx07UY— J.LEAGUE Official (English) (@J_League_En) July 23, 2023 Firstly, his universal soldier John Stones netted to reduce the gap before the second-half cannonade set things straight. Erling Haaland’s brace, along with Julian Alvarez’s and Rodri’s goals, made it 5-3 against the charming minnows.Erling Haaland scored a crucial goal to lead an epic comeback for Manchester City against Yokohama F･Marinos in today’s MEIJI YASUDA J.LEAGUE WORLD CHALLENGE 2023 powered by docomo.Yokohama F･Marinos 2 – 3 Manchester City#JLEAGUE #JWC pic.twitter.com/OVqu6UzUvC— J.LEAGUE Official (English) (@J_League_En) July 23, 2023 What a goal from Rodri to double up the lead for Manchester City against Yokohama F.4-2pic.twitter.com/M6NTmn8GSn— FansArena (@FansArena4) July 23, 2023 Lots of insecurities in the defence will probably worry Guardiola, who’ll have a long chat with Kalvin Philips and Manuel Akanji, among the others, ahead of their next friendly on the Asian tour against Atletico Madrid. ##NAJAVA_MECA_7383293##
