A four goal haul from Edin Dzeko helped City overwhelm Tottenham in an excellent free-flowing game. Samir Nasri had a dream debut with three assists and showed how instrumental he can be in Roberto Mancini’s team.
With Dzeko as the focal point Nasri, Silva and Aguero displayed the fluidity and interchanging which Mancini looks for in his attacking play. Clichy is perfectly suited to providing the width on the left, while Zabaleta got the nod to do the same on the right.
Hart – Not as busy as last year, but still required to pull off more top class saves than the scoreline suggests. 8
Zabaleta (Richards 63 mins) – Did an excellent job keeping Bale quiet. Good to see Pablo get his first start and should be sharper with a few more. 7
City qualified for the Champions League with a single goal victory over Spurs, scored with sweet irony by Peter Crouch. The result was significantly better than the performance, though the resilience instilled by Roberto Mancini ensured there was no repeat of Saturday’s defeat.
Instead there is the promise of a new era with the club being able to attract better players at more reasonable prices just as Financial Fair Play kicks in. The importance of this result for Garry Cook’s “project” cannot be overstated.
Hart – Made up for allowing Distin’s header to sneak in on Saturday with a world class save to claw out a Pienaar header at the start of the second half. Has now equalled Nicky Weaver’s club record for the number of clean sheets in a season. 7
Richards – Great to see him back and Micah was a strong attacking threat in the opening minutes. Thereafter Rose got in too many crosses, but Micah helped Kompany in nullifying the Crouch aerial threat. Saved his best till last with an injury time tackle on Defoe. 8
Forget Everton and the Cup Final, a win tonight puts City in the Champions League. That should be the focus for everyone at Eastlands, in front of what looks like being a sell-out crowd.
There would be no better send-off for Wembley than having a top four place secured. For that reason Mancini is likely to go with his strongest line-up.
Here we go again! City’s new season begins as our last one ended, in terms of meaningful games, with a mouth-watering clash against Spurs. Both teams will be desperate for a positive start.
Whether either manager believes his side is ready for such a clash is another matter. Harry Redknapp complained about his own pre-season schedule and the bout of international friendlies.
City gave it their best shot and came up short as Peter Crouch led Tottenham to a top four finish with the only goal of a competitively fought game. The result saw The Smiths “Heaven Knows I’m Miserable Now” played over the PA in place of a lap of honour on the pitch. Such is City life.
Fulop – Demonstrated his shot stopping with excellent saves from Defoe and others. Came for and caught a couple of crosses. Only the up-and-under kicking style was a concern. 7
Zabaleta – Nullified the attacking threat of Bale excellently, but wasn’t able to contribute enough quality in the attacking part of his game. 6
And so to our cup final. At least that is how Roberto Mancini is describing tonight’s match against Tottenham, and nobody is arguing. If we win, we have another cup final on Sunday, but that’s beside the point. Nobody should look beyond Tottenham.
This Sunday’s Eastlands clash between City and Liverpool has been billed as crucial in the race for a Champions League spot, and one which Rafa Benitez can’t afford to lose. If City do win, they would be four points ahead of Liverpool and have a game in hand.
