Manchester City

3.38

• 
  7

  1

  3.00

  Joe Hart

  Had an extremely quiet first half and barely touched the ball. But he'd be content with that fact. Very easy night's work for the England No.1.

• 
  12

  0

  3.50

  Micah Richards

  Was always looking to get forward and join in on the attack. Added an extra layer of width when he did get the ball in these advanced positions.

• 
  10

  1

  3.00

  Jerome Boateng

  Was assigned the task of shackling Emile Heskey and he generally won that battle. Used his body and strength to keep Heskey at bay.

• 
  7

  0

  3.50

  Joleon Lescott

  With Heskey being isolated for much of the night, he was often free to pick up another Villa attacker as and when the situation required it. He was comfortable in what he did, but the team as a whole defended very well.

• 
  8

  2

  3.50

  Pablo Zabaleta

  Was captain for the night and led his team by example. He did what he needed to with minimum fuss and didn't get involved in anything he shouldn't.

• 
  10

  0

  3.00

  Aleksandar Kolarov

  Played wide left as Gareth Barry was employed in the middle. Didn't have any remarkable runs but still was a viable option when City shifted the play in his direction.

• 
  10

  0

  3.50

  Gareth Barry

  Was the focus of the Aston Villa fans vitriol and he showed no signs of this fazing him. Was prepared to run from box to box and was involved at both ends of the field.

• 
  8

  2

  3.50

  Patrick Vieira

  Was instrumental in the opening goal and played in usual and famed manner. Put himself about, ruffled feathers and marshalled the deeper midfield ares with authority.

• 
  11

  0

  3.50

  Yaya Touré

  Made an incredible start to the game with a goal after only four minutes. Provided the ball for Balotelli to make it 2-0. Played almost as a striker at times as David Silva had been given free reign to roam.

• 
  35

  0

  4.00

  David Silva Top of the Match

  Was popping up everywhere on the field. Middle, wings, it didn't matter, when he had the ball at his feet he was causing big problems for Villa and his team-mates made the most of this by exploiting the uncertainty it caused. Got a well-earned goal in the second half.

• 
  24

  1

  3.50

  Mario Balotelli

  Took his goal very well. His run was spot on and once the ball dropped for him he made it look easy as he put it past Brad Friedel. Made way for Carlos Tevez after an hour.

Substitutions

• 
  2

  1

  0.00

  D. Boyata

  Came on for Micah Richards late in the game.

• 
  3

  2

  0.00

  Jô

  Replaced Yaya Toure late on. Should have made it four in the dying moments but hit his shot directly at Friedel.

• 
  8

  3

  3.00

  Carlos Tévez

  Came on for Balotelli after an hour. Never made much of an impact but the damage was done by that point.

Aston Villa

3.00

• 
  2

  1

  3.50

  Brad Friedel

  Would have been very disappointed to concede so quickly in the game but couldn't do anything about the shot from such close range. Had to make saves later on which kept the score down.

• 
  2

  1

  3.00

  Ciaran Clark

  Made a great sliding lunge to prevent a goalscoring chance after 14 minutes. Got pulled out of position more than once as he was tracking David Silva.

• 
  1

  1

  3.50

  Richard Dunne

  Making a return to Eastlands will always be a big game for the Irishman. Looked up for it and was barking orders. May not have been captain, but he played like one.

• 
  3

  1

  3.00

  Chris Herd

  Got a rare start and was involved in two physical moments. Clobbered Balotelli in the first half, and was on the receiving end of it from Patrick Vieira in the second. Retribution perhaps?

• 
  0

  2

  3.00

  Fabian Delph

  Was replacing the injured Nathan Baker at left-back. Struggled to cope with Richards' runs and looked vulnerable at times.

• 
  1

  2

  3.00

  Stilian Petrov

  Booked early for a studs-and-all challenge on Patrick Vieira. Set the tone of his evening right there. Was never far from a crunching challenge. That's his game and he did it well tonight.

• 
  9

  3

  2.50

  Michael Bradley

  Another of the Villa players who decided to break up the City game as much as he could. Did this but not much else. It was a poor team performance and he was a guilty as the rest of his team. Was brought off for Ashley Young

• 
  2

  2

  3.00

  Barry Bannan

  Played in the middle instead of outside left as he usually does. Because of this he never got the chance to stretch his legs and run at the City defence. Maybe he could have done more on the wing?

• 
  3

  3

  3.00

  Gabriel Agbonlahor

  Tried to link up with Heskey but the chances didn't come his way. When the opposition is in control, the attacking players can do little to swing the momentum.

• 
  1

  4

  3.00

  Emile Heskey

  Played for large portions of the game up front on his own and this didn't suit his style of play. He needs a foil to be truly potent and this was lacking for much of the night.

• 
  0

  5

  2.50

  Nathan Delfouneso Flop of the Match

  Did the best with the situation at hand, but his team failed to perform as a unit. He will forget this game in a hurry. Was replaced by Downing.

Substitutions

• 
  0

  1

  0.00

  Stewart Downing

  Came on for Delfouneso.

• 
  0

  0

  0.00

  Ashley Young

  Replaced Bradley in the second half.