Leyton Orient 1-2 Manchester City: Late De Bruyne goal denies FA Cup giant-killing

A late Kevin De Bruyne goal saved Manchester City’s FA Cup hopes after going behind against League One Leyton Orient at The Gaughan Group Stadium.

The hosts took the lead in remarkable circumstances in the 16^th minute, after Jamie Donley caught Stefan Ortega off his line and attempted to lob him from the halfway line. The ball hit the bar and then the City keeper before bouncing into the net and sending the hosts into raptures.

After losing debutant Nico González to injury, it looked like the writing might’ve been on the wall for City, but a pair of second half goals from Abdukodir Khusanov and De Bruyne rescued them in the nick of time.

As it happened

In this most bizarre of seasons, Manchester City are no strangers to a close call. After scraping out of the Champions League group stage, Pep Guardiola and co. travelled to The Gaughan Group Stadium for a clash against League One Leyton Orient, victory an expectation rather than a hope. Little did they know how difficult they’d find things in this clash between the East End and Eastlands.

From the start, the visitors never looked particularly comfortable. A goalmouth scramble on their own line in the fourth minute, where Lewis was particularly lucky to have been fouled after failing to clear his lines, set the tone for a shaky first half.

Whenever they broke into the box, they were swarmed by red shirts. Still, they were able to create chances. Ten minutes in, Ilkay Gündoğan missed the target from no more than seven yards after a squared ball from Savinho nullified Josh Keeley in The Os’ goal. But they just never looked settled, their football as sluggish as the muddy wet pitch they were playing on.

Then there were the chances at the other end. City had had 75% of the ball, as is to be expected, but Leyton Orient looked more than dangerous on the break. Four minutes after Gündoğan’s miss, Charlie Kelman was played in behind and through on goal, a heavy touch and an excellent spready of Stefan Ortega’s body the only thing preventing him from giving the hosts an unlikely lead.

But then, on 16 minutes, that missed chance was avenged in some style. New City signing Nico González lost the ball on the halfway line. As his teammates and fans were asking for a free kick, Donley latched onto the loose ball and spotted Ortega off his line. So, he hit a most audacious strike from just inside the City half. It looped, dipped, and hung in the air for what felt like hours, before crashing off the bar and onto the goalkeeper’s back and into the net.

The Gaughan Group Stadium erupted. They’d just seen a moment of utter genius, the side seventh in League One now in front against the champions of England.

As for City, when it rained, it poured. González, the belated Rodri replacement, was hauled off injured in the 21^st minute and his side’s woes grew ever worse.

After going behind, they started to create more chances. Bernardo Silva, brought on for his injured midfield partner, was denied on the line by Donley shortly before Keeley made a remarkable save to deny Omar Marmoush from point blank range. City had had chances in the first half but went into the break uncomfortable and 45 minutes away from the most shocking FA Cup exit in recent memory.

Then, in the second, some respite and a goal. Khusanov was introduced for Vitor Reis, and it was he to equalise, though he didn’t know much about it.

Lewis had fashioned enough room for a shot on the edge of the area and tried his luck. Nothing had beaten Keeley thus far, but this effort would, as it took a nick to deceive the Spurs loanee and restore parity. At first, it looked like an Orient head had sent it into the back of the net; on closer inspection, it was none other than Khusanov to inadvertently score his maiden City goal.

With their lead gone, you’d have forgiven Leyton Orient for dropping their heads, but they didn’t lie down. On 59 minutes, Donley whipped in a free kick and Kelman nodded just wide of the post with Ortega flat-footed. If they kept plugging, they were still in this game.

But then, the inevitable happened. Kevin De Bruyne had been introduced, and with 11 minutes of football left to play, he’d made a darting run in behind. No one picked him up, and Jack Grealish had spotted him. One ball over the top later, the Belgian was in on goal, a little wide but not to be deterred.

Keeley neither came nor went, and allowed De Bruyne to nick the ball past him and into the net. It was ever so deft, ever so precise, and just what Manchester City needed to escape the biggest scare of their season.

Just before fulltime, Leyton Orient had two final chances to force extra time. First, substitute Darren Pratley fired over in a crowd of bodies, and then, on 90-minute, captain Daniel Happe volleyed over the bar from inside the six-yard box.

It was an agonising ending for the hosts. They’d defended valiantly, and they almost did enough to deny the Premier League champions. But it wasn’t to be.

Manchester City had done just enough to reach the fifth round of the FA Cup. After their horror defeat to Arsenal the weekend prior, this was just the result they needed. With Real Madrid on the horizon in the Champions League, the FA Cup might be their best shot at a trophy, and that shot is still viable: just.

As for the visitors, they were so close yet so far from the ultimate cupset. After the stoutest of defensive performances, they ended empty handed, nothing but deserved pride to their name. In the end, though, the game between the East End and Eastlands was won by the latter.

The lineups

LEY: Keeley; Currie, Happe, Simpson, James; Brown, Galbraith; Jaiyesimi, Donley, Perkins; Kelman

MCI: Ortega; O’Reilly, Dias, Reis, Lewis; Gündoğan, González; Grealish, McAtee, Savinho; Marmoush