ClaretandHugh’sPlayerWatch man Danny Leach put his beadies on Zaba today as the veteran came up against his former team. Here’s the experienced right back’s every touch!

2 – Sends a long ball up to Arnautovic who is pushed
3 – Controls a bouncing ball on the edge of City’s area but a pass to Arnautovic in the air is blocked by Laporte
6 – Clears the ball upfield but it goes to Laporte
20 – A long ball out wide to Sane by Delph is headed away for a throw
27 – Makes a great tackle on Sane out wide to put the ball out for a throw
31 – Fails to block a low Sane cross in the box from the edge of the area after initially standing up well to him. The ball is cleared from danger.
42 – Controls an Otamendi long ball to Sane really well shielding him from the ball
45 – Makes a great interception on Sterlings cross preventing Gundogan from shooting
47 – Recieves the ball from Ogbonna and drives forward before making a great through ball to Arnautovic but he can’t sort his feet out and the ball is lost
60 – Makes a great sliding tackle on Sterling on the edge of the box
68 – Picks up the ball and runs down the line but his pass forward to Arnautovic is blocked by De Bruyne
76 – Makes a great clearance on the goal line preventing Jesus from scoring a tap in
90+2 – A good tackle on Sterling sends the ball out for a City corner.

Verdict – 6.5 – Given the result, Zabaleta had a good performance and was certainly one of our better players. His experience showed as he put a reliable performance and made some good tackles. Without him the defeat would have been heavier.