English football experts are still analyzing the match between “Manchester City” and “Real” and publishing various conclusions.
A reputable source — the cityxtra.co.uk website — presented to Uzbek football fans an analytical article about Abdukodir Khusanov related to this match.
— Although “Manchester City” lost to “Real Madrid” for the third consecutive time and was eliminated from the UEFA Champions League, a number of positive aspects can be highlighted from the last match at the “Etihad” stadium.
While players like Rayan Cherki and Jeremy Doku showed an impressive performance in attack, at certain moments when “Real” moved into offense, the only player who seemed capable of withstanding the pressure from Federico Valverde, Kylian Mbappé, Vinícius Júnior and other top footballers was Abdukodir Khusanov.
The Uzbek footballer joined “Manchester City” a little more than a year ago and was one of the players brought in to rescue the crisis-hit 2024–2025 season.
However, in the short time he has spent in the northwest of England, Abdukodir has already experienced a lot.
Khusanov has been a professional footballer for only two years, and before moving to the French club “Lens” in the summer of 2023, he played for Belarus’ “Energetik-BGU”.
At first, he struggled to secure a place in the starting lineup, but in 2024 Khusanov became a key player for “Lens”.
The central defender’s outstanding physical qualities — including recovery speed and hidden strength, as well as his aggressive style of play — attracted the attention of many clubs across Europe, and after playing just 31 matches for “Lens”, “Manchester City” signed him in January 2025.
The start of his Premier League career was very difficult, as just a few minutes into his debut match he made a mistake that allowed “Chelsea” to score. That moment still follows Khusanov: neutral fans, commentators, and experts tend to judge his performances through the lens of that debut error.
However, those who regularly follow “Manchester City” confirm that this was an exceptional case in what has otherwise been a successful spell at the club. In February 2025, he was named Player of the Month at the “Etihad”. A year later, in January 2026, he repeated this achievement.
Due to injuries among teammates and a drop in form, Khusanov spent some time playing as a right-back in the first half of the season, which became one of his best periods.
However, when the main central defenders — Rúben Dias and Joško Gvardiol — were injured, Khusanov stepped in and showed his true potential. This was especially evident in the home match against “Chelsea”.
Whether playing alongside academy graduate Max Alleyne, who returned from loan, or with Marc Guéhi, who joined the team in January, Khusanov has performed almost flawlessly since the start of the year and has earned the full trust of Pep Guardiola.
The home match against “Real” clearly demonstrated how much Khusanov has grown during his 14 months at the “Etihad”.
The previously mentioned physical superiority remains his main weapon, and thanks to it he stopped one of the most dangerous players in the world — Vinícius Júnior — on several occasions. Apart from a controversial yellow card in midfield, he played an almost error-free match.
In addition, he made a lightning-fast recovery run and with a perfectly timed tackle denied Brahim Díaz a goal-scoring opportunity.
In the match against “Real”, Khusanov completed 58 out of 59 passes successfully, which shows how quickly he is adapting to Guardiola’s style, and considering that he is still in a developmental phase, this is natural.
His communication skills are constantly improving, he recovers quickly after mistakes, and his famous “combinational” tackles and actions that trouble opponents regularly earn applause from the “Etihad” crowd.
That is why Khusanov, in a short period of time, has become a fan favorite among “City” supporters, just as he is in his homeland.
Moreover, the match against “Real” became a real triumph for Khusanov and once again proved that despite competition from Rúben Dias, Marc Guéhi and Joško Gvardiol, Abdukodir deserves a place in the starting lineup both now and in the future, — writes City Xtra expert Hamish MacRae.
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