Elliot Anderson and Iliman Ndiaye are setting standards for Enzo Maresca at Manchester City, with the summer signings stepping up amid patchy results since the international break. Anderson has been the standout figure in midfield, while Ndiaye has become the most productive winger.
Anderson's Impact Against RB Leipzig
Anderson, the £116m signing, grabbed the game by the scruff of the neck late on in the Champions League win over RB Leipzig. His surging run and cross found Erling Haaland at the back post to tap in the fifth and decisive goal.
"He has been amazing, he has had an amazing start to his City career and that is what you expect," said Haaland afterwards. "You have to come straight in and perform. It is not easy to come in, you need to adapt and new players and a new coach, so he has been impressive. Respect."
Anderson has featured more than Ayyoub Bouaddi and offered more than Enzo Fernandez. As he goes back to former club Nottingham Forest on Saturday, he has already shown why City briefly made him their record signing.
Ndiaye Steps Up in Doku's Void
Jeremy Doku looked set to dominate the Premier League when he returned from injury and tore Liverpool apart last month, but he has struggled to have the same impact since. He provided an assist for Phil Foden against Ipswich and impressed off the bench in the Carabao Cup games against Brighton, yet recent performances in the Premier League and Champions League have seen him frustrate on the ball.
In that void, former Everton forward Iliman Ndiaye has stepped up. His delivery for Fernandez on Wednesday night was his fourth in his last five appearances, sending him level with Phil Foden at the top of the assist charts. Three of Ndiaye's four assists have been crosses into the box that have been headed in, with Haaland netting the other two.
Maresca's New Team Needs Time
Doku and Antoine Semenyo have been hampered by injury, yet it is the new man who has been the most productive winger and given Maresca what he is looking for. The City manager is right that his new team needs time to gel and he needs to work with them for the squad to better understand his ideas.
If it is encouraging that some of his summer signings are already setting standards on the pitch, others need to step up for team performances to improve.
