City moved up to third in the table with a confident and professional defeat of injury ravaged Stoke. Carlos Tevez was the hero with two contrasting goals of the highest quality, while a Joleon Lescott header was sandwiched inbetween.
Afterwards Mancini claimed Tevez is set to stay with the club. It’s to be hoped he is, but one can’t help but feel the captain’s future is a story that is set to run for a while yet.
Hart – A quieter day than he had at Wembley. Caught the odd cross and made a couple of saves to win the Premier League’s Golden Gloves award with his seventeenth clean sheet. 7
Richards – Without Etherington to trouble him, Micah put in a storming display down the right flank. Great to see him charging through challenges, while his intelligence with the ball is improving. 8
Tonight should see an extra special ovation greet the teams as they walk out onto the pitch. Hopefully that will inspire Roberto Mancini’s side in a game that has gained extra significance following Arsenal’s defeat to Villa.
There are two clear advantages to finishing third. Qualifying directly for the Champions League group stages rather than having to play a qualifier where City might not be seeded is the obvious one. The second is that payments for partaking in the competition are higher for the team that finishes third.
City won the 2011 FA Cup courtesy of a 75th minute strike by Yaya Toure. Regardless of what happens in the future this was a historic victory for the club as, for the first time in a generation, a City captain lifted a piece of major silverware.
All the players contributed in a thoroughly professional team performance of which Roberto Mancini could be proud. There may have been few clear-cut chances and only the one goal, but this was an assured display far removed from our usual travails against Tony Pulis’ side.
Hart – Joe was out quick and stood up well to make his one key save of the match against Jones. Elsewhere his judgement was excellent on when to come for crosses. 7
Richards – Pushed up and kept a half-fit Etherington on the back foot throughout. Did his share of winning the aerial battles too. 7
Thirty years after our last FA Cup Final, Roberto Mancini has guided us back to Wembley to take on Stoke for that most elusive of items – silverware. The excitement amongst City fans is at it’s greatest for a generation.
After securing a top four place with Tuesday’s win over Tottenham, all our energy and focus can safely be channelled to defeating Stoke. It won’t be easy.
A game of two halves saw Roberto Macini’s side grateful to be level at half-time and gutted to be the same at the final whistle. An extra time equaliser for Stoke took the shine off Micah Richards’ brilliant opener which looked to have given us victory at an icy Britannia Stadium.
On reflection a draw was a fair result given our timid first half performance. Tottenham and United may have won at the Britannia this season, but Stoke are now in good form and the icy pitch was more than a leveller – it gave Tony Pulis’ side a distinct advantage.
Hart – Showed good judgement during a testing first half. Unfazed by Delap’s throws and was confident when coming for the ball. 7
Richards – Very poor in possession during the first half, but made up for it with sublime skill to break the deadlock. Realising the defender would expect him to lay the ball off, then spinning into the vacated space was a piece of attacking play better than anything offered by Balotelli, Silva et al. 7
Buoyed by last week’s victory over Fulham, Roberto Mancini will be looking for our third consecutive away victory in a potentially tricky fixture against the Potters. Following an FA Cup defeat and hard fought draw in trips to the Britannia Stadium last season, the City manager will be well aware of the dangers posed by Tony Pulis’ side.
It’s no surprise to hear that Mancini has had the squad working on the defending of set pieces in training this week. With Pablo Zabaleta suspended either Jerome Boateng will resume at right back, or Micah Richards if the German isn’t fully fit.
A failure to take chances saw City crash out of the FA Cup in extra-time, with the harsh dismissal of Emmanuel Adebayor by card happy Steve Bennett in the second period giving Stoke the advantage. The pressure will be turned up on Roberto Mancini even though he can hardly be blamed for the squandering of numerous chances.
