Bournemouth 1 Man City 2: O’Reilly impact, Haaland’s injury concern, and how did City turn it round?

Manchester City have found much of this season uncomfortable but they are back in familiar surroundings now: an FA Cup semi-final awaits, a record seventh in as many years, with the chance of silverware retained.

Bournemouth were eventually beaten to a meeting with Nottingham Forest in the last four, even if it took the half-time introduction of Nico O’Reilly at left-back to inject some urgency and dynamism into City’s performance and transform the afternoon.

No home team had managed a goal in the quarter-finals over the weekend until Evanilson bundled the hosts ahead at City’s expense. That reward was borne of Matheus Nunes’ wayward pass, with David Brooks conjuring a delicious cross while City desperately attempted to recover. Justin Kluivert poked a shot back across Ederson, which might have bounced in, but the Brazilian made sure from close range.

That felt like a suitable reward for the hosts’ more urgent approach from the outset — though, in truth, it was plucked with Pep Guardiola still baffled how his team were not ahead. Erling Haaland should have put them into the lead three times, only to skew off-target a header, fail to beat Kepa Arrizabalaga from a penalty and miss a one-on-one. Haaland’s spot-kick record this term reads four goals from seven attempts.

There were signs of life after the interval, though. Phil Foden had already skipped through midfield to force Kepa into another save before O’Reilly tore into space and squared for Haaland to make amends for his earlier profligacy with the 30th goal of his season.

The Norwegian’s departure with an ankle injury after an hour might have checked the visitors’ momentum but his replacement, Omar Marmoush, scored with his first involvement. Again, O’Reilly created the opportunity, with Guardiola’s changes feeling increasingly inspired.

Here, Sam Lee and Thom Harris dissect the action at the Vitality Stadium.

Was this an unlikely turnaround?

How best to sort out the problems created by Guardiola choosing a collection of City’s most under-performing players and putting them all in midfield? Take off a centre-back and put on a 20-year-old attacking midfielder at left-back!

No, but seriously, that did the job.

On paper, City’s starting line-up was strong: Kevin De Bruyne… Bernardo Silva… Ilkay Gundogan… Foden! The issue was that, in reality, they have each been struggling for ages. Throw in Nunes at right-back and Mateo Kovacic holding the fort while simultaneously trying to smash into another fort, and you have got a recipe for, well, some nice interplay that broke down quite easily, which is what happened in the first half.

Bournemouth took advantage but even as the better side, they never looked like they were fully in control.

21 – Manchester City have conceded the first goal of a match 21 times in all competitions this season – the only Premier League clubs to do so more in 2024-25 are Leicester City (25), Man Utd (22), and Southampton (22). Recurring. pic.twitter.com/sy0zrtoakm

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) March 30, 2025

Enter O’Reilly. He hogged the headlines in the last round by scoring a double against Plymouth Argyle, and here he was again, asked to maraud forward, which allowed him to provide two assists as City continued the first-half ploy, just this time a bit more successfully. The City game plan was still difficult to assess — De Bruyne and Foden continued to play poorly — but the equaliser subdued Bournemouth.

Guardiola says he sees O’Reilly as a holding midfielder, despite the youngster playing all his fledgling career further up the pitch. O’Reilly does not necessarily agree with his manager. But until then, he will play at left-back, it seems — and if City win the FA Cup, he will be a big part of it.

Sam Lee

Haaland’s mixed afternoon

It says something — although I am not sure exactly what — that Haaland being forced off with a foot injury is a real worry for City, despite him missing three huge chances in this game before he eventually did net their second-half equaliser.

Haaland has been one of City’s most consistent performers this campaign without recapturing the thrilling form of his first season at the club.

He has remained their biggest source of goals by a mile, with 21 in the league, 14 ahead of the second-highest City scorer. Haaland really should have had a hat-trick early on, but he planted a header wide, saw a penalty saved and then clipped over after being put through one against one. While those kinds of misses are in his locker, it is a cartoonish representation of what you get with him.

Any prolonged absence now from the injury suffered as he clattered into an advertising hoarding under pressure from Lewis Cook will be a big miss for City as they look to finish their season as well as possible.

Regardless, his second-half equaliser established Haaland as the first player to score 30 goals in all competitions in each of his first three seasons while playing for a Premier League club since Ruud van Nistelrooy with Manchester United after his arrival at Old Trafford in 2001.

Sam Lee

How did Bournemouth initially disrupt City?

Guardiola would have been expecting an energetic, high-pressing approach from his opponents this afternoon — his team were comprehensively outbattled here back in November when they lost 2-1 — but even the most carefully laid build-up plans can falter under the sheer pressure Bournemouth put you under close to your own goal.

There were two incidents in the opening three minutes of goalkeeper Ederson blasting the ball into touch, but neither was his fault. Even when the Brazilian was ludicrously composed minutes later, producing a drag-back to get out of pressure, the City goalkeeper found himself surrounded by four Bournemouth shirts in his own penalty area.

Guardiola endures his side’s first-half toils (Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)

City managed to escape on occasion, as they did on 28 minutes with a flowing one-touch move that ended up with a De Bruyne cross. Even then, they were almost dispossessed moments earlier, with Abdukodir Khusanov absorbing a healthy barge from Kluivert to keep the move going.

Bournemouth’s opener came from a similarly aggressive press — Cook sensing his moment to inch forward and intercept a wayward Nunes pass — and while they struggled to keep up that intensity in the second half, their off-the-ball aggression gave them a foothold in a game that, by sitting in and absorbing pressure, they likely would have struggled to effect.

Thom Harris

And how did they change it?

If City’s first-half display was frantic, panicked and patternless as they struggled to make their way through a packed, pinball midfield, their second was characterised by the individual quality that has dug them out of so many holes before.

Guardiola’s only half-time change was to replace Khusanov with academy graduate O’Reilly, shifting Josko Gvardiol to centre-back. That gave O’Reilly the licence to stride forward from a full-back role, making the most of the space vacated by winger Kluivert when he tucked in to defend centrally in an attempt to pen City in (illustrated from his player dashboard below).

Switches of play and quick passing moves to that side quickly became an avenue for City to escape.

Their equaliser came after a storming 50-yard run onto a De Bruyne through ball, and while the second was scrappier — O’Reilly nipping in to pinch the ball from an off-balance Antoine Semenyo — it was another moment of positivity and aggression down the left that helped turn the tide.

City were soon playing Bournemouth at their own game, stealing the ball from Illia Zabarnyi for a late chance, before De Bruyne made a dangerous interception with five minutes to go after a wayward build-up pass.

In the end, technical quality told — but it needed a bit of physicality, pace and duel-winning bite to wrestle the ball, and the game, back their way.

O’Reilly towers above Nunes, Marmoush and Bernardo Silva, celebrating City’s second goal (Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)

Thom Harris

What did Guardiola say?

The City manager praised O’Reilly, telling ITV the 20-year-old would be an important part of his plans for the semi-final: “Nico scored two goals against Plymouth Argyle (in the previous round) and today, his impact was again outstanding. He’s going to play in the semi-final for sure.

“He’s a No 10 (attacking midfielder), we can’t forget that. He has pace, vision and quality in the final third. But with the newer generation, you have to be careful with words — they hear things and then they go up. But I’m really pleased for the game he played.”

Guardiola also highlighted his side’s work rate. “Not just the young players, but all the players looked today — Bernardo, Gundogan, De Bruyne — really, really good.

“Comparing this with the game here in November (2-1 defeat for City)… we came here then with flip-flops (on), we came here for the holidays against a team who, if you don’t compete, it’s impossible. Today, we were a team. We challenged. In football, you have to run. In my period, as a manager, it is about how much we run and how much we fight. For so many games this season, it has not happened.”

What next for City?

Wednesday, April 2: Leicester City (home), Premier League, 7.45pm UK, 2.45pm ET

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(Top photo: Mike Hewitt/Getty Images)