It certainly wasn’t easy, but Manchester City managed to beat Fulham at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

A Rodri-less Man City were made to work for all three points by a spirited Fulham side, even going behind in the game thanks to a 26th minute goal from Andreas Pereira.

Mateo Kovacic’s brace and a goal from Jeremy Doku would make it 3-1 eventually for City, before a Rodrigo Muniz goal late in the game set up a nervy finish. In the end, however, Pep Guardiola’s side were able to hold firm and secure a 3-2 win.

Here’s Man City’s best and worst-performing players in the win over Fulham, according 90min’s player ratings.

Mateo Kovacic: 9/10

As the Rodri replacement in Man City’s midfield, it’s fair to say that Mateo Kovacic has quite the task on his hands over the next few months.

On Saturday, he certainly showed that he’s capable of filling the Ballon d’Or nominees boots.

The Croatian, as Rodri has been on so many occasions in recent years, proved to be the match winner for Man City at the weekend. Kovacic’s two goals – the second of which showing off particular finesse – were the reason why the Citizens are heading into the international just one point behind Liverpool in the Premier League table instead of four.

Ilkay Gundogan: 5/10

While his midfield teammate was firing in the goals on Saturday, it was pretty clear that Ilkay Gundogan had left his shooting boots at home.

As he has in a rather worrying number of games since re-joining the club, Gundogan spurned a few decent chances in the game on Saturday. He needs to re-find his best form in front of goal soon, or he may be out of the starting lineup.

READ THE LATEST MAN CITY NEWS, TRANSFER RUMOURS & GOSSIP