Three things we learned - Ipswich Town 0-6 Manchester City

Yesterday at 07:25 PM

City blitz Ipswich as they get back to their very best

Phil Foden shined as Manchester City thrashed Ipswich Town to move up to fourth in the Premier League table.

The 24 year old bagged two first half goals, with an assist for Mateo Kovacic in between, to give City a comfortable advantage at the halfway point in the match against the Tractor Boys.

Jeremy Doku, Erling Haaland and James McAtee completed the rout in the second half to give City a vastly deserved three points and subject Ipswich to a dismal loss.

Here are three things we learned as City ran riot against Ipswich:

The players still have it

This was the City we all know and love.

They started the game poorly, even by recent standards Ipswich were, in my opinion, the better team, and more dropped points from City looked like they were on the cards.

But Foden's goal - finished off like the Foden from last season after brilliant build up down the left hand side - set City on their way, and they didn't look back.

Ederson was very good at the back, making a few decent saves and pinging the ball around as well as he ever has done.

Matheus Nunes and Josko Gvardiol are technically playing out of position at full back, but both looked accustomed and comfortable. It was so good to have Ruben Dias back, who shone again, and it is no coincidence that Manuel Akanji also played well next to City's number three.

Mateo Kovacic was brilliant at the base of midfield, whilst Ilkay Gundogan had his best game since rejoining in the summer, looking as sharp, silky and intelligent as he did in his first stint at the club.

Up front, Phil Foden and Kevin de Bruyne are getting back to their best, Erling Haaland has found his shooting boots again, and on the left hand side, Jeremy Doku is staking a claim to start games despite competition from Jack Grealish, Savinho and soon to be Oscar Bobb and Omar Marmoush.

They've shown that when confident and with more players fit, City can compete at the top level still.

It was only Ipswich, but the performance was undeniably better than anything we've seen all season and is extremely comforting to see ahead of the upcoming difficult run.

With three players to arrive in Marmoush, Abdukodir Khusanov and Vitor Reis (and in Douglas Luiz/an alternative midfielder and Andrea Cambiaso potentially two more) City are in good stead to clinch a top four place and rebuild in the summer to go and get the league title next year.

City have attacking options in abundance

City can only realistically operate with four players in attack, and choosing that quartet will be a difficult job for Pep Guardiola.

Haaland is nailed on, as are De Bruyne and Foden when they're fully fit. But that leaves one more space to be battled out by as many as six players.

If Doku carries on the way he has in City's last two games against Ipswich and Salford City, he'll keep his place, but Savinho is also in a rich vein of form too.

Marmoush won't be being brought in to just sit and the bench, and if he keeps up his Eintracht Frankfurt form he must get plenty of minutes, whilst if Bobb performs as he did in pre-season he'll need to be shoe horned in as well.

All of this is ignoring Grealish and McAtee. The former isn't in the best of form whilst the latter is inexperienced, but both would be leading players for most other teams in the Premier League.

It's easy to say this whilst they're all in form (it certainly wasn't this rosy five weeks ago) but at the moment, City have an embarrassment of riches up front and Guardiola is presented with a selection headache for the next few weeks.

Dias and Ake are the best centre back partnership - but they can't stay fit together!

City's best performing defenders this season by far should be the nailed on partnership, but unfortunately they just can't stay fit together at the same time.

Dias and Nathan Ake last started together in City's 3-0 win against Nottingham Forest, but first Ake, then Dias, and now seemingly Ake have suffered muscular injuries to leave them on the sidelines.

Both are proper defenders, who can lead the backline and are willing to put their bodies on the line for the team.

Getting them together at the back will be crucial for City to get back to their defensive best, and hopefully with Khusanov and Reis's arrivals it'll give them the chance to ease their workload and rest.