Message to Mancini: Please don't revert to last season's set up.

I'll start off by saying that this is not me having a go at any players, not in the slightest. Neither is this me thinking I know better than Mancini. However, I do not believe Mancini should put Gareth Barry, Nigel De Jong and Yaya Toure in the starting 11 together in the final push for the Premier League title.

When Mancini first elegantly wafted into the hot-seat at City and during last season, we saw the team transform from one that leaked goals with its seive-like defence to one that was very hard to break down. In doing so, Mancini took a lot of criticism for fielding a 'negative' team as Barry, De Jong and Toure lined up on the pitch together.

As it happens and I'm sure you are aware, this so called negative team scored more goals than Harry Redknapp's wonderfully entertaining Spurs who played delightfully free flowing and attacking football. Not only did City score more, they conceded less, in fact they had the best defence in the league.

Despite scoring more goals though, City did find it difficult to break teams down if they decided to sit back and defend. Although Toure offers a moderate creative ability and can cause havoc with defences on the break, he is the kind of player who creates the foundation for an attack near the centre of the park and slowly works it forward.

When you then add 2 defensive players to the mix, Gareth Barry and Nigel De Jong, what this does is slow the overall tempo down dramatically when you have extended periods of possession, and one of those players takes away a place from a more attack-minded player. Although it makes your team harder to break through, it hinders your own creative and attacking ability.

Teams approached City last season as though it was a cup final, the big spenders from the City taking on the working class man and they were not going to go down without a fight. City needed to be hard to beat, they needed a midfield and defence that felt like the other team were running into a solid brick wall every time they tried to go forward because of this attitude.

To be honest, Mancini didn't have too many viable options available to him in attack either. Santa Cruz and Adebayor simply didn't fit into his plans, or style he perceived for the future. Bellamy never saw eye to eye with Mancini and, along with RSC and Ade, had been sent out on loan with several other players who were brought to the club by managers past.

Balotelli was bought in the Summer but was (and still is in a few respects) a rough diamond. He was totally unused to the league and just a little bit too crazy on the pitch to be able to rely on for an extended period of time. Dzeko came to the club in January and took a long time to settle in also.

That left just Tevez as a viable and consistent focal point of attack while the squad was slowly moulded together by Mancini. And to be fair to him, he did the business for the most part.

But then the summer of 2011 came, qualification to Champions League football had been gained as well as a shiny new trophy in the form of the world's most respected domestic cup competition, the FA Cup. The transfer targets were identified, Savic and Clichy came in to bolster the ranks of defence, and Sergio Aguero and (eventually) Samir Nasri were also added to the squad.

By now Dzeko and Balotelli had settled into the squad and City had plenty of attacking options to choose from.

Despite this, the first game of the season arrived (albeit without Nasri at this stage) and Mancini opted for last season's set up to start off with. De Jong and Barry as holding mids and Yaya Toure pushing further up the pitch.

Swansea put in a good showing and City did create a lot of chances in the first half, none of which were put away. Swansea were largely caught on the counter as they began to commit forward, which fell straight into the game plan with De Jong and Barry breaking up play and Yaya ready to break forward into space working a treat.

In fact it was a slick counter attack which broke the deadlock on 57 minutes before Mancini was forced into making a substitution when De Jong picked up a knock.

Instead of swapping like for like, or near to it, he decided to bring on Sergio Aguero forcing Toure to drop a little deeper. This really was the spark of an astonishing run of games that saw City tear teams to shreds as their confidence soared.

Teams then slowly began to drop deeper and deeper, hoping to grind out a draw and maybe snatch a goal for a win, and in some cases forget about the draw altogether and just limit the number of goals they lost by. If they did attack there was more pace and vision in the side to quickly punish it.

For the most part, Toure was lining up with Barry while De Jong was injured and working his way back into contention, and this gave an extra place for attacking players. City were controlling possession, the tempo of the game, grinding down teams to the point of capitulation and then smashing them apart.

A combination of either 2 of Aguero, Balotelli and Dzeko (while Tevez was playing golf) was enough to keep teams guessing. But the point isn't the different qualities each of those brings, it's that City usually had 2 strikers on the pitch, because the 2 defensive midfielders had been ditched in favour of a more fluid 1 holding midfielder in Gaz Baz and a roaming/box-to-box player like Yaya.

Despite still being everyone's Cup final, teams are no longer looking to attack City, and if they do they make damn sure they also defend in numbers. A formation that requires 2 defensive midfielders is almost totally redundant in the Premiership.

It worked at the start of the season against Swansea because they tried to attack so much (although we only scored the 1 goal while Barry, De Jong and Toure were on the pitch and 3 when only 2 of them were on), and against Villa who were hopelessly pathetic that day, we simply don't need that kind of cover anymore. City have effectively become victims of their own attacking ability.

The last (and only other) 2 games those 3 players have been on the pitch together were Sunderland away and Swansea away. Each time Mancini realised that it was the wrong decision and duly took one of either Barry or De Jong off for an attacking player.

Combining those two games together, those 3 players were on the pitch for a total of 83 minutes. In those 83 minutes, City created a rather meager 11 chances compared to a season's average of 19 per every 90 minutes of play.

Don't get me wrong, City may well not have won either of those games had they started with a different 11, but the way in which Mancini changed the team early in the game suggests that he knows City would have had a better chance of winning had he not reverted to 2 defensive midfielders.

And why is this? Because sacrificing creativity for defensive solidarity when teams are simply sitting behind the ball with 8,9 or even 10 outfield players  (even when they are the home side) is pointless and gives teams the opportunity to gain a foothold in the game. 

City haven't needed that extra defensive player at any point during the season and still have the best defensive record in the league because other teams have hardly had a sniff at goal while City dominated the games with that extra attacking player.

I don't particularly want to see either of these 3 players left out, but in keeping them all in, you're then leaving out one of Aguero, Balotelli, Dzeko, Silva, Nasri, Milner, Johnson, and even Pizarro now he's getting up to speed and Tevez if he is to make an appearance. All of these players are players who have the ability to create and/or put away chances.

The vast majority of teams left to play aren't suddenly going to start attacking because they know how dangerous City are going forward. They will continue to sit deep, try and counter attack and snatch a goal.

So Mancini, change the starting 11 to keep players fit and to keep teams guessing if you wish, but please, please stick to the style you have so beautifully implemented for the majority of the campaign, home and away.

If we are to really push for this Premier League title, don't go out to play the opposition, make them play us. 



Twitter: @MikeWalshMCFC or @mcfcDSLeftFoot
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot

The Engine Room

25 games into the Premier League season with only 13 games remaining, City sit at the top of the table with a 2 point lead over the closest contenders. There are a number of reasons as to why City are now in the position they're in; Kompany and Lescott's ever improving partnership in defence, the sometimes seemingly telepathic relationship between Silva and Aguero etc etc.

There is one partnership that I feel merits much more praise than it gets. The success of the team this year is in no small part influenced by the complimentary qualities of Gareth Barry and Yaya Toure.

I've made my feelings known about how infuriating I can find Yaya at times in another article. When he's bad, he's awful, but when he's good, he's world class. I have also made no secret of my admiration of Gareth and his superb consistency and defensive qualities.

This season has seen Yaya deployed in a deeper role than last season. This has seen Nigel De Jong sitting out most games as Toure lines up along side Gareth Barry. It has been a master-stroke by Mancini, as although City were solid defensively last term, we found it difficult to score many goals (although we still finished with more than the beautifully free-flowing, attacking Spurs).

Now Mancini has brought more creative players in with Nasri and Aguero to play alongside Silva and other forwards to unlock defences. But what links City's defence and attack together? You guessed it, Barry and Toure.

Now don't get me wrong, the team can cope without either one of these two players. But, and it's a big but (No Barry or Yaya jokes please), the team simply isn't the same without one or the other.

Both players have been almost constant features in the side when available so a relatively fair comparison of statistics is available. This is exactly what I want to do, and I think you'll find that the two compliment each other almost, if not as well, as the defensive pairing of Kompany and Lescott.

First of all, it should be pointed out that although Yaya lines up as a defensive midfielder on the team sheet, he is not a defensive midfielder. He may have been one in Spain, but he certainly isn't one here. In fact, Barry is as much an attacking midfielder as Toure is defensive. You will clearly see this in the statistics to follow.

Each statistic is an average per game measured throughout the course of their appearances in the Premier League this season.


Defensive

As previously stated, Yaya and Barry differ greatly in their defensive ability and it would be ludicrous to think Mancini isn't actually aware of this when lining them both up in the centre of the pitch.

Barry does the majority of the grunt work, and as such, goes relatively unnoticed by what appears to be the vast majority of football fans. He makes more tackles, around double the number of interceptions and clearances and made a number of blocks throughout the season.

Because of this, Barry has also committed around 30% more fouls but has made around 66% more tackles in that time.

One thing is quite certain, Barry does not get the credit he deserves for his defensive duties. This season has seen him grow in the estimations of more and more City fans, but he is still largely scoffed at by football fans in general (maybe apart from Villa fans who know full well what he brings to the table).


Attacking

Just like the defensive stats, the attacking ones also differ quite a bit.

Toure has scored more goals and has more assists than Barry, thanks to his more advanced role compared to that of his teammate. Although considering this, 2 extra goals and 1 assist isn't altogether outstanding.

What is noticeable however is that rather unsurprisingly, Toure dribbles with the ball double the number of times Gaz Baz does. Toure is well known for his ability to cause havoc amongst defences when he runs with the ball due to his sheer size and good close control on the move.

Another noticeable difference is the number of key passes both make. With Yaya's more advanced role, it is only natural that he makes key passes to the attacking players and he makes almost double the number compared to Barry.

One thing that can't be measured by statistics as the effect that Toure has on the opposition. Perhaps strangely, one of Toure's most useful qualities is just his presence. With him roaming about further up the pitch, it creates more space for the mercurial Silva and others to operate in.


Passing

When looking at cold stats, Toure is the pass master with an average of 77.6 completed passes per game at a rate of 90% success. What should be noted though, is that despite a generally more advanced position he does make a large amount of passes to the back two and to Barry.
Barry is more likely to attempt a cutting pass along the ground from midfield to one of the wider positions which partly accounts for a lesser success rate, although 86.5% is by no means poor.

Both have relatively good long ball stats, but Toure successfully completes 1.5 more of these passes on average. It has to be said, Yaya's ability to hit a 40-50 yard lobbed pass is superb. Once again due to being further up the pitch he also completes more through balls than Barry.

It isn't surprising that neither put in many crosses but as you would expect with Barry's history and ability to play wider, he puts in more accurate crosses.

The pattern is quite undeniable, and both complement each other beautifully. It's why we still have such a good defensive record and partly why we've scored so many more goals compared to last season.

Just to compare, this time last season we had scored 39 goals, conceding 20. This season we have scored a staggering 64 goals whilst conceding only 19, giving us a goal difference of 45 compared to 19 last term.

What this partnership provides is creativity and fluidity while still keeping a large measure of solidarity in front of Kompany and Lescott (who's partnership along with a magnificent Joe Hart has also helped keep the goal tally below what it was this time last year). It is quite possibly the best midfield partnership in English football and a major reason why City are sitting pretty at the top of the league heading into the final straight of the race for the Premier League title.

Player stats taken from whoscored.com



Twitter: @MikeWalshMCFC or @mcfcDSLeftFoot
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot

Manchester City v Tottenham Hotspur: Post match review.

A cagey first half as both teams sized each other up, 4 goals in 9 minutes in the 2nd half and a stoppage time penalty. I think my pulse has just about managed to return to normal.

There was a lot of talk about this being a season defining game for City and Spurs, but to be honest, I think it was more important for Spurs' title challenge than it was for City's given the next 2 month's worth of fixtures. Kyle Walker took to Twitter and stated that City were "there for the taking" or so he thought.

Micah Richards returned to the side and was once again handed the captain's armband, an indication of how far he's come since Mancini joined the Blues and a testament to how highly the Italian rates him. Mario Balotelli also passed a late fitness test and started on the bench. James Milner was preferred over Nigel De Jong and started alongside Gareth Barry in the centre of the park.

The first half lacked any real pace and urgency, although City managed to create a couple of chances. One of which came on 17 minutes when Silva pinged the ball back from the touchline into the path of Sergio Aguero, but as has happened recently, Edin Dzeko was in the way and the chance went begging. Spurs also had a couple of speculative efforts that were blocked by City's defence.

8 minutes later a quick free kick set Aguero on his way with Kaboul in toe. Aguero could have possibly bought himself a penalty after he was taken wide in the area and Kaboul gave him a little push in the back. To his credit though he stayed on his feet and created a chance for David Silva who flashed the ball across the face of the goal.

With 30 minutes gone, Richards stole the ball from Bale and then Parker before hitting a low cross to Aguero on the edge of the area. Sergio jinked to his right, giving himself so space but a good save from the evergreen Brad Freidel prevented City going 1-0 up.

There was a potential penalty shout early in the second half Richards steamed into a packed 18 yard box with his cross being blocked by Assou-Ekotto's elbow. I've seen them given, but with the distance between the players was minimal and a penalty would have probably been a harsh decision.

Then the game really sparked into life with 55 minutes gone. David Silva doing what he does best, finding space, keeping the ball and threading an inch perfect pass through the defence. Nasri had made a superb run from the left, leaving Kyle Walker stranded. The pass was excellent and the finish, superb. First time, right foot, Friedel had no chance.

City had the ball in the back of the net 3 minutes later after Nasri's corner was flicked across the face of the goal by Dzeko. Joleon Lescott got to the ball before Scott Parker and slid into the back of the net with the ball and City were in complete control and seemed as though this could spark another mauling.

If you thought a mauling was on the cards though, you were wrong as Spurs hit back almost straight away from the restart. After 2 changes of possession, Kaboul  hoofed the ball forward and Savic, who had had a good game up to that point and dealt with similar lofted passes throughout the first half with ease, misjudged the flight of the ball and gave Jermain Defoe a clean run on goal. Joe Hart could do very little about it as Defoe rounded him and passed the ball home. What should have been a comfortable lead with Spurs not making many good chances before hand was threatening to turn into a real scrap for victory.

Minutes later though, City could have go back the 2 goal lead when Aguero knocked the ball through the Spurs defence and into Dzeko's path but the Bosnian blazed the ball high over the bar from 10 yards. Despite his goal in his previous game he still looks like a player low on confidence and with Balotelli fit again he may find it difficult to keep his place in the starting 11.

9 minutes after City scored their first goal, Spurs levelled the game when Lennon carried the ball down the left and passed the ball to Gareth Bale who had drifted into the middle. Once again, Hart could do nothing about it as the first-time finish was simply top class.

Spurs could have taken the lead when once again Savic lost possession. This time Bale stormed towards City's goal and squared it for Defoe, but he couldn't turn it into the net. It was a real let off for City.

Mancini had already made his first change, bringing on Mario Balotelli for Edin Dzeko and after getting booked for a late challenge on on the edge of the area a few minutes earlier, he then found himself in the centre of another controversy as it is being alleged that he intentionally went to stamp on Scott Parker's head after the two of them got in a tangle.

If you watch it in real time, it's nothing. Watch it in slow motion and it looks like a deliberate attempt at a stamp. Personally, and I can hear the cries of bias and blue tinted specs already, I don't think it was intentional and I know many will disagree. I'll be the first to hold my hands up and say when something is wrong, but despite the best attempts of Harry Redknapp after the game and Alan Hansen in the MotD2 studio, Balotelli is not the kind of person to try and deliberately stamp on someone's head.

Mario had already been knocked totally off balance by Parker's challenge with Modric coming in behind him. Now you can go on about 'unnatural movement' or whatever you want but all you are doing is speculating as to how a person may or may not move when that will vary from person to person depending on their size, size, agility, actual direction of movement and intended direction of movement.

If you want to watch it in slow motion, go ahead, then tell me where Luca Modric is looking when the 'stamp' occurs. Did he call to the ref to point this out? No. Why? Because it wasn't an intentional stamp to inflict injury on anyone. In fact no player on the pitch made any claims of a stamp.

The ref was 6 yards away, did he see any foul play? No. Why? Because it wasn't an intentional. And that is where I will leave it, but no doubt this will drag on for days in the press and in the forums compounded by the factor that Balotelli then went on to win a penalty in the last few seconds of time added on.

When the pressure is on and a penalty has to be taken, there is only one man for the job. Seemingly unaffected by any kind of pressure and supremely confident in his own ability, Mario Balotelli is one of the best penalty takers I have ever seen. Nonchalantly striding towards the ball and effortlessly stroking it beyond the keeper 

A simply enthralling game for the neutral, a heart stopping game for City and Spurs fans, but it leaves City 8 points clear of the London Club and still 3 points clear at the top of the table with a fantastic run of Premier League games ahead with the opportunity to push further ahead in the race for the title.




Twitter: @MikeWalsh1880 or @mcfcDSLeftFoot
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot

Wigan Athletic v Manchester City: post match

That certainly wont go down as one of the greatest City performances of all time. I got a rather uneasy feeling just before kick off and it proved to be quite a nervy game all round as, I think it's fair to say, City scrapped away to get a 1-0 victory in a half empty DW Stadium.

Of course you could look at the result and the performance and be thinking that City should have flattened Wigan without much trouble but the Premier League often produces a surprise or two throughout the season. We've seen several good results for teams lower down the league, or bad results for those higher up depending on which way you want to look at it.

This game looked as though it might be one of those days as City never really got going despite the first half looking quite comfortable as City went ahead through Edin Dzeko's first goal in over 2 months. The goal itself came in the 22nd minute after Edin won a free kick down the left flank. David Silva lofted the ball into the box and Edin Dzeko found himself unmarked and unimpeded to head the ball home.

The 2nd half was a different story with Wigan being largely the better side as City's usually metronomic passing lacked consistency, even David Silva looked out of sorts as a number of passes he usually does in his sleep didn't reach their intended targets.

What City didn't do though is fall apart. When luck isn't on your side and you have a few players not playing quite up to the standard that has come to be expected of them then you need them to just grind out results.

A good indication of how City's evening was going was when Aguero got himself within 7 yards of the Wigan goal but instead of pulling the trigger with his left foot he weaved his way across the face of the goal expertly avoiding the Wigan defenders only for Edin Dzeko to put in a perfectly timed tackle, prodding the ball into Al-Habsi's hands.

Despite Wigan's performance in the 2nd half, Joe Hart only had to make 2 saves all game. Partly due to Wigan's appalling final ball, and the battling defensive display from City. Gareth Barry and James Milner both put in a good shift and Sergio Aguero made himself a pest when Wigan had the ball in their own half. Stefan Savic and Joleon Lescott both put in a decent performance at the back too.

As is becoming the norm in City games of late there was yet another contentious decision by the referee. This time Wigan's Figueroa blatantly cut out a lofted pass forward with his hand at the half way line. The pass would have seen Aguero have a free run on goal with no other defenders within 20 yards of him.

Surely this was a clear goal scoring opportunity despite the distance from goal as there were no other defenders near Aguero. But no, Martin Atkinson gave a yellow card for what should have been a straight red, much to Mancini's growing and justified annoyance with the inconsistency of officials in the Premier League.

Thankfully it didn't change the outcome of the game like it potentially has done in recent weeks but it is yet another indication that something desperately needs to be done about the standard of officials in England.

I wont hold my breath for any positive headlines from this game as we all know when certain other teams  grind out results after a couple of bad games they're "playing like champions" while other teams are "struggling" or "feeling the pressure". Whatever is said, it wont change the fact that City are 3 points clear at the top of the league.




Twitter: @MikeWalsh1880 or @mcfcDSLeftFoot
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot

Keep calm and carry on

Well, what can I say about today? Disappointing if not predictable just about sums it up in a polite way. If you haven't heard yet, where have you been? The FA have upheld Vinnie's 4 match ban after an independent panel felt that the wholly inept Chris Foy was right in sending off Vincent Kompany in the Manchester derby.

Now for all the people saying "#twofoottackle = red card" and the line "by the letter of the law it was a red" you really should know better and check "the letter of the law". In fact you can do it right HERE. Also to quote Referee Development Officer, Peter Roberts with reference to two footed tackles; "If he takes the ball cleanly, it is a free kick and a caution." I rest my case your honour.

But anyway the damage is done, now City should use this as motivation to push harder to bring the Premier League title to the Etihad Stadium. Over the last few weeks there has been a growing siege mentality surrounding the squad with all the talk of City's season collapsing and some rather dubious red card decisions and officiating that has had a say on certain results.

We saw this mentality in full force in the FA Cup against United and much has been said about the performance that day. What City need to do now is continue that same determination right up to the end of the season, starting with Liverpool's visit to the Etihad in the Carling Cup.

I know for a fact there are fans of every team that don't feel the competition is worth winning. I beg to differ, silverware is silverware and although the big prize is ultimately the Premier League trophy, the Carling Cup is important for the players and the teams taking part regardless of what the fans think.

How Mancini will go about the starting 11 is anyone's guess as although Komapny's dismissal is a massive blow there are players waiting to step up to the challenge. Micah Richards and Stefan Savic are the 2 other players that can play at centre-back alongside Joleon lescott whilst Kolo Toure is away.

Savic put in a great performance when required to against United and even picked up a nasty blood injury that was quickly wrapped up for him to battle on. To be fair to the lad, he didn't put a foot wrong and will be itching to prove his worth to the team now he has a chance for a short run in the starting 11.

There is also a question surrounding the fitness of David Silva, although the Twitter rumours of a broken ankle a just a little wide of the mark.

One plus point to take note of is that Gareth Barry has served his ban which was picked up against Liverpool in the Premier League, and will no doubt return to action straight away to bolster the options in the centre of midfield and provide cover for the roaming full-backs. Barry has been the most consistent player so far in this campaign and will hopefully pick up where he left off.

Another positive is that both Mario Balotelli and Edin Dzeko took full part in training and will hopefully be in contention for a return tomorrow or against Wigan.

On the transfer front, Kompany's ban may mean Onuoha gets another 6 months at the club as he may well be needed for cover should the unthinkable happen to any more defenders before the transfer window closes. Although Mancini showed little intent on giving him another chance as he opted to name 16 year old Karim Rekik on the bench ahead of him on Sunday.

The fans certainly have their part to play. The 2nd half of Sunday's game showed what can be done when the crowd gets behind the team. Several of the players commented on it after the match and clearly respond to the noise levels in the stadium as we have seen several times this season. The louder the crowd, the bigger the performance has been. So you know what to do.




Twitter: @MikeWalsh1880 or @mcfcDSLeftFoot
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot

Manchester City v Liverpool: Post Match

I said it would be one of the toughest games of the season and despite the score I think it was. Playing a game against one of the top teams in the country only 2 days after playing another game was never going to be a walk in the park.

City never really got into any sort of rhythm at any point in the 90 minutes and the possession and passing stats show just that as Liverpool had around 2/3 of it with City completing only 77% of their passes. Going down to 10 men after 73 minutes didn't help but the pattern had already been set. It was never a 2nd yellow either.

Mike Jones is just another in a line of referees who don't appear to be up to the standard required of a Premier League official. Gareth Barry received 2 yellow cards and was given his marching orders, while Adam and Skrtel was free to do pretty much whatever they like for the majority of the game. Even Skrtel giving away a penalty straight after Barry got sent off couldn't get Mike Jones to dip his hand in his pocket to give Liverpool a card after Glenn Johnson's solitary 55th minute booking for quite clearly pulling back Aguero.

I have complained about City's poor finishing in their recent few games as a number of good chances have gone begging, but imagine how Liverpool fans feel? They've had to put up with it from the very start of the season and now Liverpool and Suarez have accepted the ban (if not his guilt) the task of converting the majority of chances falls to Andy Carroll.

Unfortunately for Liverpool, Carroll is almost totally one dimensional, simply asking for the ball to be whipped into the box for him to try and stick his head onto. That was the plan against City anyway. Unfortunately again for Liverpool is that they came up against a Vincent Kompany that has regained his best form in recent weeks and 10 of Kompany's 14 clearances came from crosses aimed at Carroll. In fact, Carroll may as well have not been on the pitch for all he offered. Kompany on the other hand was awarded man of the match.

Although not the kind of game people have come to expect from City, it was a great defensive display with everyone mucking in. Even the forwards stuck a few tackles in albeit with rather mixed results, they are forwards after all. A lot of players had to put a shift in, and although it was rarely spectacular it was full of grit and determination. Not exactly the performance you would expect from a group of over payed, uninterested mercenaries on a cold and wet Manchester evening.

City did concede more chances than they would have liked but Joe Hart rarely looked out of his comfort zone as he put in another commanding performance. The players in front of him handled themselves well, and Joe mopped up any mistakes they did make.

Yaya had possibly his best performance of the season as he gave City a driving force on the counter attack on a number of occasions, one surge won the penalty after going down to 10 men which James Milner converted His goal to make it 2-0 was my goal of the match. It was a fantastic header that went in off the bar, not only for how it went in, but because he was moving backwards at the times and managed to get decent power on it as well as direction.

Aguero's opportunistic shot from the edge of the box was also quite stunning as he hit the ball with enough top spin which made the ball dip very quickly in front of Pepe Reina. The Spanish keeper, who has had a very good season so far, couldn't get down quick enough and the ball shot underneath him into the ball of the net.

All in all it was a solid performance from the squad and full of the determination that was required to silence the growing number of critics all too ready to write off City's season. City proved they can grind out results despite not playing particularly well. I say 'grind out results' but 3-0 isn't really what I'd call a close result. So much for City's season falling apart eh?




Twitter: @MikeWalsh1880 or @mcfcDSLeftFoot
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot

Manchester City v Liverpool

A very quick turnaround for City now as Liverpool visit the Etihad Stadium only 2 days after City's dramatic loss against Sunderland. When questioned about the fixture list, Mancini was clearly unhappy that Liverpool got an extra 48 hours rest before what is one of the big fixtures in City's Premier League calendar.

Kenny Daglish will be hoping to capitalise on Arsenal's loss to Fulham as a win would take them above the Gunners into 5th place, level on points with 4th place Chelsea.

Although it isn't title challenging form, Liverpool don't have a particularly bad away form (W5-D1-L3) and despite not scoring as many as at home, they have conceded fewer goals on their travels. They beat Chelsea and Aston Villa away, but also lost to Fulham and drew to Wigan in recent away fixtures. However City haven't lost at home in any competition since a rather frustrating 1-2 defeat to Everton on December 20th 2010

Suarez returns from a one match ban for his one finger salute to Fulham fans on December 5th, but also knowing he almost certainly faces a minimum 8 match suspension starting in the next couple of weeks for racially abusing Patrice Evra. Another charge of the same nature could see him banned from English association football indefinitely.

Despite what has gone on recently and even though he hasn't been in goal scoring form, he is one of the Liverpool players who can really cause problems for defenses up and down the league. Whether he causes problems through his ability to dribble or his ability to feign a foul or injury is another question.

Craig Bellamy is another player who could cause problems if he plays, and after scoring 2 goals against Newcastle the chances are he will feature. It's no secret that he didn't get on with Mancini and putting one over on him will bean appealing prospect for the combative Welshman.

David Silva, Mario Balotelli, James Milner, Micah Richards, and Gael Clichy are almost dead certs to return to the starting lineup. Kolo Toure is a possible other due to playing 2 games in such a short space of time. Mancini will be hoping these players will make the difference against Liverpool.

Vincent Kompany's return to form in recent weeks couldn't have come soon enough as this is the 1st of 3 times City play Liverpool in the next month as well as the 2nd Manchester derby of the season. Although his long passing was a little wayward against Sunderland he has shown he has a fantastic range in his arsenal which helps City attack from the back.

I really hope Gareth Barry plays, as he for me should be getting the player of the month award for December after a string of top draw performances. He is as important to the team as any other player in the squad and City really do notice the difference when he's not in it.

After a couple of disappointing results City will be looking to strike back and continue their great home form with a win against Liverpool, but this may prove to be the toughest game of the season so far.




Twitter: @MikeWalsh1880 or @mcfcDSLeftFoot
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot

Sunderland v Manchester City: Post Match

How on earth did City manage to lose that game? It was the kind of end to the game that City fans of a certain standing will have been fearing, virtually the last kick of the game from a goal that was offside.

That's the way City have generally gone about their business for more years than I care to remember. In previous years fans would have just laughed it off as 'typical City', but with the squad City now have and the money that has been spent it's more difficult to accept results like that when there is so much to play for. Still, it's something we have to do. Perhaps not laugh it off, but accept the result and move on.

City had round 60% possession of the ball, 10 corners, and 25 attempts on goal. Sunderland had their backs to the wall on a number of occasions and played almost entirely on the break which is something City are going to have to quickly learn to overcome if they are to continue on their title challenge.

Mancini was clearly unimpressed that the opportunity to go 3 points clear wasn't taken as several players simply did not perform up to the required standard that Roberto has come to expect from his players despite the match stats. In fact Mancini was so unhappy he left the touchline and headed down the tunnel after the goal was conceded and before the game ended. He looked like a man who had been let down in a big way.

Most of the players in question are those that have had to watch from the sidelines in recent weeks and you would have thought they would have grabbed the chance with both hands, but that didn't happen. The passing in the final third of the pitch was pretty poor almost throughout the 90 minutes and it got worse the closer to goal it got.

Yaya, Nasri, Johnson, Kolarov and Kompany were all guilty of playing the ball into the box with little to no conviction or purpose. Dzeko's passing was pretty bad throughout too, and unfortunately his shooting was even worse. 1/3 of his passes were wayward and only 1 of his 10 shots were on target.

One player who can hold his head high despite the defeat is Gareth Barry who was as dependable as ever. Despite losing, Kompany and Lescott also played well defensively overall.

I'm not sure I can recall feeling this disappointed about a result in the last 12 months or so, and we're still top of the league! Perhaps the result against Everton last December was as close to the same frustration many have exhibited after this result. I suppose that's an indication of just how far City have come in the last 3 years.

City may well be going through the sticky patch that all teams go through at some point in the season, although the results themselves other than this one against Sunderland haven't actually been that bad. A loss at Stamford Bridge, a draw at the Hawthorns and two wins at home isn't too much to be worried about at this point.

A big kick up the backside is needed after this performance before Liverpool in 2 days, and some players will be kicking themselves as they have missed an opportunity to really show their worth to the squad today. Plenty of games are coming up though in the next couple of months so they will get another chance. Lets hope they take it.

In brief summary of the game it was a story of poor passing in the final third, extremely poor finishing from all involved, some good defending from Sunderland and an offside goal that stole the 3 points at the death. I probably should have put that first so you didn't have to read all of the above. It'd have saved a minute or two of your time anyway.

Thankfully, most other teams in the title and top 4 challenges also slipped up this week. Manchester United lost at home to Blackburn, Chelsea lost at home to Aston Villa, and Spurs drew away to Swansea. Only Liverpool and Arsenal picked up 3 points so it's not all bad.




Twitter: @MikeWalsh1880
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot

Sunderland v Manchester City

City kick off the new year travelling North East to Sunderland who it's fair to say haven't really been up to scratch so far this season. Hence the sacking of Steve Bruce and the hiring of Martin O'Neill.

Since taking charge of Sunderland on the 5th of December, the fortunes of the Club appear to be looking a little better. However the points they have picked up are against those around them in the table and they lost away to Spurs, which isn't all that bad given Spurs' current form.

Where they might be in the table had they held onto Darren Bent last January and Assamoah Gyan is anyone's guess, but the fact that Sebastian Larsson is their current top scorer tells a story itself. That's not a slur on Larsson at all, and he is definitely going to be a goal threat for the defence to watch out for. But the fact that Larsson is a midfielder tells you they haven't managed to replace the threat that Bent and Gyan posed in front of goal. In all honesty, Niklas Bendtner wasn't ever going to be the answer to the loss of those two players.

It will be interesting to see how O'Neill deploys his midfield as this is where a game against City is really won or lost. Playing a defensive 6-3-1 like Stoke certainly isn't the answer as this gives City's midfield far too much space and time to look for the right pass. West Brom on the other hand, although once again playing defensively, played with 2 close banks of 4 which limited the amount of space for players like Silva to thread that killer ball into.

That hasn't always worked for teams as we've seen, but it certainly makes it more difficult for City to break through, and I suspect that may be how O'Neill will look to thwart City's advances on Sunday.

As for City, I fully expect Mancini to field a very different team to the one that started against West Brom. Why? Because City play host to Liverpool just 2 days later. Liverpool will also have had an extra 48 hours rest so it will be up to Mancini to try and keep the '1st' 11 as fresh as possible.

The 2 main headaches will be the full-back and central midfield positions. At the time of writing this there is no news on the fitness of Micah Richards or Aleks Kolarov. If both are fit to play I suspect Aleks will play at left-back and Zaba will continue to play on the right. This being with the Liverpool game in mind of course where Richards and Clichy would start.

As regards to the midfield issue, does Gareth Barry start against Sunderland after only being used as a sub against West Brom? Or does he sit on the bench again and be fully fit to face Liverpool? I know this wont be popular with a lot of the newer City support, I'd rather him play against Liverpool as he has been one of, if no the most consistent performer in the entire squad since the start of last season. My thoughts on his contribution will have to wait for now though.

If I was pushed to make a decision on who will start in the centre I'd go for De Jong and possibly Abdul Razak. Mancini is going to want Barry and Yaya fit to face Liverpool, and I've simply no idea what is happening with Owen Hargreaves.

A recall to action is in order for Edin Dzeko, after missing out on his last chance through a late ankle injury. As mentioned in previous articles, he is due a few goals as he seems to score in fits and starts. Although he is getting less opportunity at the moment due to the ever increasing contributions of Mario Balotelli.

I suspect this will be quite a tough game, especially with the number of changes we might see to the starting 11. Even so, City have enough ability to win and keep another clean sheet. Whether that happens, we'll find out on Sunday.




Twitter: @MikeWalsh1880
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot

Manchester City v Stoke City: Post Match

That could be the easiest 3 points earned by any team at any point this season. Stoke seemingly arrived at the Etihad with only one plan; not to get smashed. They certainly didn't want to have a go at City's back 4 and in the first half they rarely managed to get the ball out of their own half. I'm not sure whether or not 3-0 is getting smashed either by City's recent standards.

As predicted, Mancini was set to give Dzeko a starting role but an ankle injury before the game put an end to that. Lescott did return at the centre of defence though, and Adam Johnson also got a rare start.

The first 45 minutes may as well have been a training match of attack vs defence. Stoke's lineup started as 4-4-2 but ended up more like 6-3-1 for the vast majority of the half as City passed the ball pretty much at will, looking for an opening in the tightly packed Stoke defence.

It was Adam Johnson who got the first meaningful shot. Cutting in from the right at the edge of the area there was only ever one thing on his mind but his curling shot ricocheted off the woodwork.

Tony Pulis was constantly barking orders at his players from the first whistle, but whatever he was trying to convey helped very little, if at all as the entire half was all about City. Even when Stoke managed to get the ball out of their own half it was picked up by either Kompany or Lescott without much trouble.

After 15 minutes the possession stats flashed up 65-35 in the Blues' favour, and it didn't get any better for Stoke. Nasri and Toure went wide with shots of their own around the 20 minute mark as City continued to completely dominate the play.

The first goal came just before 30 minutes after a nice bit of play between Silva and Nasri out on the left wing. Silva found Yaya with a cutting ball into the box with the Ivorian hitting a shot/pass across the box met initially by Kompany, parried by Sorensen, tapped home by Aguero. A brilliantly worked goal.

City didn't have to wait too long for the next goal either, and what a goal it was! The home crowd were still thinking they should have had a penalty when Silva was blatantly pushed in the area and Stoke were looking to get the ball back out. They did get it out, only to the top of the 18 yard box before City had the ball again. Adam Johnson found himself in plenty of space and struck a beautifully driven shot from around 30 yards that rocketed into the bottom left of the goal. 36 Minutes, 2-0, absolutely nothing for Joe Hart to break a sweat over.

That's how it continued in the second half although Stoke put up a bit more of a fight. I say a bit, and I mean a bit. In fact Stoke were lucky that City appeared to be taking it easy knowing the number of games they will be playing in a short space of time.

Stoke conceded a third less than 10 minutes into the second half in a way that merged the first 2 goals together. Stoke were pinned back and managed to clear the ball from their own area but only by a couple of yards before Toure and Barry stole the ball back for City. Nasri received the ball off Barry and hit a low cross across the goal which was met once again by Aguero who tapped the ball home.

Much of the second half was City asking Stoke "go on then have a go" and then taking the ball off them and knocking it about for a while in no real rush to extend their lead. Not to sound cruel on Stoke, but they had absolutely no idea either in defence or attack and very rarely managed to keep the ball for a reasonable length of time. It's not often that stats give you the full story in a game, but these few really do;

Posession

Man City: 76% - 24% :Stoke City

Passes

Man City: 937 - 292 :Stoke City

Pass %

Manc Cit: 91% - 72% :Stoke City

Shots on Target

Man City: 11 - 0 :Stoke City

Shots off Target

Man City: 3 - 3 :Stoke City

Shots Blocked

Man City: 8-0 :Stoke City

After the electric pace of their game against Arsenal, City were quite content in taking it a little easier, keeping the ball and making Stoke do all the running. Stoke managed 3 shots in the whole of the 90 minutes, and not one of them was on target. Joe Hart may as well have sat in the stands for all the work he needed to do.

Another 3 points, Manchester City sat at the top of the tree at Christmas for the first time in Premier League history, and the first time since 1929. Just another tick in the Club's record breaking season so far.

Merry Christmas and here's to a happy Blue year




Twitter: @MikeWalsh1880
Facebook: David Silva's Left Foot