De Bruyne spares Man City blushes at Leyton Orient

LONDON: Manchester City needed a late winner from substitute Kevin De Bruyne to beat Leyton Orient 2-1 and reach the FA Cup fifth round on Saturday after the third-tier side threatened to shock the Premier League champions.

Jamie Donley´s audacious long-range effort that came back off the bar and rebounded in off City goalkeeper Stefan Ortega had given Orient an early lead.

They maintained that advantage until 56 minutes when Rico Lewis´ shot deflected in off Abdukodir Khusanov for his first Manchester City goal. Pep Guardiola had to turn to his bench more than he would have liked just four days before a mammoth Champions League tie against Real Madrid.

But the introduction of De Bruyne made the difference as he scored the winner 11 minutes from time.

Guardiola warned on the eve of the match that his side would be made to suffer despite the massive disparity in resources between the clubs. City lost to third-tier Wigan in Guardiola´s second season in charge and he was not surprised by Orient´s heroics. “Yes, because I know the FA Cup,” said Guardiola on why he expected such a battle. “Since 2018 against Wigan I know.

“It was a typical FA Cup game, that is why this competition is unbelievable. For the fans, how the crowd support and we knew they are strong.”

Victory came at a cost for City, though, as new signing Nico Gonzalez hobbled off just 22 minutes into his debut after a £50 million ($62 million) move from Porto.