Japhet: “To play in these games is not something you can take for granted”

Japhet Tanganga made his Premier League debut against Liverpool’s fabled front three just over a year ago. On Saturday, he made his first appearance in the Premier League this season against two of England’s brightest talents at the Etihad Stadium.

Once again, just like he did against Firmino, Mane and Salah on 11 January, 2020, Japhet rose to the occasion against City’s flying duo Raheem Sterling and Phil Foden. Sterling started on Japhet’s side, City’s left, but the pair switched in the first half, leaving Japhet up against man of the moment Foden.

Japhet didn’t give an inch in a fascinating battle, but, unfortunately, City ran out 3-0 winners, extending their winning streak to 16 and lead at the top to seven points, with a game in hand.

It might have been different if Harry Kane’s free-kick had gone in rather than coming back off the inside of the post with the score at 0-0, or if City hadn’t been awarded a penalty midway through the half, but nevertheless, Japhet stuck to his task, his performance later described as ‘complete’ by Jose Mourinho.

“As a defender, as well as you play, it’s never nice to concede one goal, let alone three,” said Japhet at the Etihad. “I’m happy to make my first appearance in the Premier League this season but we need to look back at it as a team and see where we can do better, but we move on to the next one on Thursday.”

How did he feel going up against Sterling, then Foden? “They are two quality players and the thing with them is, the more time you give them, or if you are back peddling and dive in, that gives them a chance because they’ve got quick brains, quick feet, you have to watch the ball at all times, concentrate and work with the team, talking together,” he said.

“As a young player, to play in these games is not something you can take for granted. It shows trust that the manager puts you in this magnitude of game, so I needed to approach it right, be aggressive and know these guys are where they are for a reason.”

As for the game itself, Japhet added: “We started well, we had a plan, the more time you give them on the ball they are going to get that momentum, so we knew we had to get after them, press them and we started well, but the penalty changed the game.

“If Harry’s free-kick goes in, we get that momentum. In the second half, they showed their quality and once they scored the second goal, their confidence was sky high.”