Everton reaction: Balotelli, Tim Howard's goalkicks, and a trio of supersubs

For four seasons Everton have come to Manchester and taken everything.  The last time City beat them at home was courtesy of a brace from none other than Georgios Samaras, in a team that still had Nicky Weaver in goal and Stephen Jordan at left-back.  This is one reason why yesterday's result was so satisfying.  The other, contrary to the frayed nerves at the stadium yesterday, was the manner of the win.

I heard many fans at the ground yesterday saying it was City's worst performance of the season, which, as a sentiment, is worrying in itself, but it is the first time a team has set up solely to stifle City's attacking play this season - as Moyes said "I wasn't going to come here for the enjoyment of Man City."  When a team has ten men behind the ball, the football is naturally going to be played patiently and in front of the wall of defenders for the large part of the game.  

Last season, many teams came to City and adopted the same tactic - sitting behind the ball and frustrating City - and for the most part, they had some success.  So it was refreshing to see City come out on top.  The perceived one-dimensional 'Carlos Tevez reliance' that was a factor last season has gone, and whilst teams can sit on David Silva for most of the game, the fruit of our riches means that Aguero, Nasri, Dzeko or Balotelli may still cause problems.  

The decision by Mancini to put his faith in the mercurial Balotelli to be the match changer will hopefully be another grounding for the young Italian.  He was obviously delighted with his goal and produced a mature and steady performance (little tantrums excepted) that fully justified him being preferred to Tevez - who is yet to find the confidence that marked his displays last season.  Mario's ability has never been in question - he has all the tools needed to be one of the best strikers in the league - and if, it is a big if, he can consistently approach games with the right attitude, then there is no reason why he shouldn't be able to force his way into the team.  With Tevez eventually staying this summer, the renaissance of Dzeko, and the arrival of Aguero, Balotelli, for all his confidence, must have wondered how much he would feature this season, so hopefully Mancini's faith in him as match-winner should re-focus him once again.  

One of the most contentious post-match issues seems to be that of Moyes's approach to the game.  I, for one, fully expected Everton to come and defend - as many teams will this season - and Moyes does have precious few resources with which to mount a serious attacking challenge to City in a game such as this: even their previous victories, as impressive as they were, were notably dogged displays - their only two shots of the game sealed last season's victory.  Yet there are degrees to such an approach.  In previous seasons, there always seemed to be the ambition to win the game - which wasn't apparent here.  It is of little consequence to me - and I recognise teams' efforts to shut out City as a sign of respect - but the lively showing of Apostolos Vellios, when he came on, was enough to think 'would it really have dented such a defensive showing to have at least one outlet upfront?'  

However, the contrast between Tim Howard's slothful, meditative art of goalkicking before the goal and his frantic, scurrying transformation afterwards was pathetically brilliant.  It is one thing to defend from the outset, which of course is just part of football, but to waste time from the first minute is something else.  

David Silva's pass for Milner's goal was unbelievable - just when I thought the central option was closed up, or, in an inexplicable wavering of faith, I thought he might just be about to lose the ball, Milner was through for the second.  He truly is a magician.  Stubbornly followed around the pitch by Jack Rodwell, his performance was an exercise in patience and he still managed to assert his influence on the game.  

On a final note, it must be quite satisfying as a manager to bring on three substitutes - two of whom score and the other completes a clearance off the goal-line.      

Wigan reaction: In praise of David Silva

It is indicative of how City have evolved as a team when the hat trick hero has plenty of serious competition for the man of the match award.  Whereas last season the criticism often levelled at City was that we were over reliant on one man (Carlos Tevez), the displays this season have been a marvel of cohesion and collective brilliance.  Despite scoring three coolly taken goals and coming close on a couple of other occasions, it was still possible to look past Sergio Aguero and surrender oneself to the majesty of David Silva.

I find it very difficult not to get carried away with my admiration for the wee Spaniard but, despite the improbability of him being able to improve on last season, he seems to have come back stronger, more confident, and almost irrepressible.  Seeing him leap through the small crowd of Wigan players to set up the third goal or his balletic twist and turn on the ball in the first half that saw him skip away from three or four defenders, it didn't seem like stopping him could possibly be an option yesterday.  Judging by the penalty he won, he even seems to have fewer scruples about putting his body on the line for the team.

It has been a familiar refrain over many years that the team had never replaced the Ali Benarbia figure - someone capable of dictating the pace of a match whilst creating the magic necessary to win the game.  In the ever-improving David Silva, that search is over.  His performance yesterday was sensational - setting up two goals and playing a part in the other, he moved with the assurance of someone who has found his home in the English game.  For a City fan, it was a joy to watch.

The Barcelona parallels are being played up or down depending on the hysteria of who you are speaking to, but with the prospect of having Silva, Nasri and Aguero all playing off one another, the spectacles to come promise to be very mouthwatering indeed.

Out of office

After a fairly unproductive couple of months, I am going to declare an 'out of office' until early September.  Criminally I am on other shores and still will be when the season begins against Swansea - but will be taking up my seat from then on in and picking up the blog from there.  If you would like to catch some of my writing still, then I have a general moan about the lack of domestic friendlies in the upcoming issue of Topical City.

Time for the end of Carlos's captaincy?

It is often the case as a football fan that you have to dislocate the man from the player or at least aspects of the man from the player who crosses that white line.  This is easy to do as long as the attitude on the pitch is what is expected.  Martin Petrov, for example, lost almost all my sympathies when he brought his name-waggling whining celebration into games.  Carlos Tevez, on the other hand, is perfect.  Disregarding the occasionally grumpy characteristics, he gives his all for the team and you cannot ask for much more from a player.  Off the pitch, however much is true of what we read, is a circus of uncertainty.

In today's Independent there is a report that three of City's senior players have approached Mancini about stripping Tevez of the captaincy.  Ian Herbert describes these developments as,

"the first evidence that the interminable uncertainty over the Argentine's future is damaging his popularity."

The key word here for us City fans is 'interminable'.  If Tevez does stay for next season, as many reports suggest, it doesn't necessarily mean that the speculation over his future will end.  There are factors, in another season at City, that Tevez would consider a compromise.  The most persistent grumble is about his family - for whatever reason, he doesn't feel Manchester and family life can be brought together, which is obviously a problem for him and his happiness in a country where, by his own admission, he has struggled to settle.  These personal problems are unlikely to be solved in a new contract and I don't think we'll hear the end of them if he were to pledge himself to the club.

All of which is fine, to an extent - it is hard to find too much sympathy with such a well compensated problem.  The issue is that this figure of uncertainty is the club captain.  Giving Tevez the captaincy in the first place was considered a goodwill gesture to keep him at the club, but he should know that greater vocal commitment to the club is needed in such a role.

I would love Tevez to stay and there are signs that this is a distinct possibility but there is no reason why he cannot stay on without the captaincy.  He has had a season where he has performed outstandingly, but his off the field comments, his transfer request and all that accompanied it, has left his position as the leader of the team looking quite flimsy - and it would hardly be surprising if more committed members of the squad are disgruntled by his continuing in the role.

Vincent Kompany would be the obvious choice as his replacement - a great leader on the pitch, respected by his team mates, and an eloquent and vocal ambassador of the club and its ambitions.

Obviously it is not as easy as all that - the last thing the management will want to do is upset Tevez at such a delicate juncture but, at the same time, if it is dealt with correctly then it could serve to show that Tevez is not the boss at the club, that the management will not bow to his every request, and this can only be good for the dynamics of the club.  A very important player does not necessarily make ideal captaincy material.  The club should be in the position of power and continuing the perceived mollycoddling of our prize asset should not be necessary where the club now finds itself in the English game.

The Theatre of Base Comedy 10/11 Awards

Player of the Season
Indisputably Vincent Kompany.  A tower of strength, poise and vision, Kompany is the side's true captain and most consistently excellent performer.

Goal of the Season
Tevez's bullet free-kick won the official award and, as a Tevez free-kick hater, it was amazing to see after all the soft chipped efforts that came before it, but David Silva's balance and close control whilst slaloming through Blackpool's defence wins it for me.  Reminiscent of Kinkladze's goal against Southampton at Maine Road, this was pure class.  Although De Jong's goal against West Ham was a close contender...

Top Buy
Yaya Toure was fantastic when it mattered - running in his own indomitable style through teams (quite often with players desperately hanging off the side of him, trying to get close) - and if his enthusiasm would've been there for all the games, he would have won this award easily.  However, David Silva gets it for adding magic to the side - magic that was so sorely missed last season after the demise of Stephen Ireland - more composure in front of goal and he would be the complete attacking midfielder.

Flop of the Season
On the other hand there is Jerome Boateng.  He arrived with great promise after an eye-catching World Cup and an excellent cross in the friendly against Valencia - but a series of injuries and timid displays have contributed to an inauspicious first season in England.  There is potential there but he does look like a player who hasn't got the confidence to do anything.

Performance of the Season
Part of City's success this season came from a willingness to mix style and doggedness when it was appropriate.  When Chelsea came to Eastlands towards the end of September, they had spent the opening month and a half of the season tonking teams to the tune of 4, 5, 6 or 7 goals - they were a side full of confidence and the 'heaviest in the league'.  City dug in and when Carlos Tevez took on the Chelsea defence on his own, City proved strong enough to hold on to that lead.  The first really impressive show of City's style was the away victory at Fulham.  One João Alves de Assis Silva was preferred in the wide left role and City's more natural shape produced some breathtaking football - perhaps capped by the 24 pass move that set up the second goal for Yaya Toure.  As a first real show of City's attacking potential, the Fulham performance gets my vote.  


Moment of the Season
It has got to be between the FA Cup semi-final and the final itself.  The semi-final victory had been coming and that release of tension when Yaya bulldozered his way through the United defence was unbelievable, but to see City lift silverware for the first time in my lifetime was an unforgettable moment - the players celebrating, grown men weeping in the stands, Wembley Poznans... It really was something special. 

Season review: Winning Mentality

The last months of a season are always going to be those that are remembered, whether they define a side's success or not - strong early season form will often be eclipsed by a woeful end, for example, as Sunderland may testify this season - but with City, the blistering run from the semi-final to the end of the season was not only a welcome surprise but also marked the arrival of the team as a force to be reckoned with.  

Trained for years in the complexities of Cityitis, we had to juggle the hope that was being offered with all the 'typical city' feelings.  Sure, we'll beat United in the semis, but wouldn't it just be typical City to then lose to Stoke - especially Stoke.  Tottenham are on a woeful run, but they always do well at Eastlands and it would be typical of City to be the ones to end their misfortune.  Can we be trusted with it all in our hands on the last day away to Bolton? The workings of the paranoid mind, but even amongst the fans that is beginning to change.  I feel it is our duty to feel like that almost - it has been ingrained over the last couple of decades - but there is less reason for those feelings.  Could the fabled winning mentality be making its way into the terraces too?

The 'winning mentality' has become one of football's clichés.  After the Champions' League final, Barcelona legend Hristo Stoichkov was reported to have said the difference between Barca and United was the Catalan's winning mentality.  Which, although I am sure he didn't mean to make it sound that way, somewhat detracts from the fact that Barcelona are by far the superior team.  Pitting some of the best midfielders of my lifetime against an ageing philanderer and Michael Carrick was never going to be much of a contest.  A crack team of psychologists and brainwashers may be able to convince my Sunday league side that they can beat anybody, but it is more likely to end in fights and breakdowns than a dizzying ascent into the football league.  

Part of it then must be a realisation of the worth of your team.  City's squad, player for player, is up there with the best in the league - if this is used in the right way, without complacency, with the correct desire, with the 'winning mentality', then there is no reason not to feel invincible.  Team ethic and discipline are important here, especially as it is something sceptics maintained wouldn't be possible at City and under Mancini, but the final months of the season showed a team coming together and playing for each other at the right time.  

Of course the unquestionable success Mancini has brought this season should strengthen his position amongst the more rebellious members of the squad, of which there will always be some, and if City can take this unity into next season, without too great an upheaval in the transfer market, then the side are in a very strong position to continue to grow next season.  

"This is a big moment for us" - Semi-final reflections

I think I'm going to leave today's sport pages out for at least the next couple of months.  Coming downstairs to see Yaya's gleeful face refreshing the memories of yesterday is the perfect kick start to the day.  I'm sure there are self-help books that advise something along the lines of 'find something that makes you very happy and leave it on full view, so that you get a positive start to the day.'  Done.

Weeks ago, when the tie was announced, a United 'friend' at work looked at me warily for a few minutes and then said 'I have a bad feeling about this.  It's coming.  It's about time you beat us,' and whilst there is a hint of a veiled jibe in there, he meant it and we both knew it to be true.  The 0-0 was drab but City should have taken more; City were the better team at the Swamp but something unbelievable happened.  If, as Mancini was suggesting, this is to be the turning point in City's history, then not a small part of it will be evidence that we can beat the best teams on the important stages.  One of the only criticisms that can be levelled against City this season is that when we have come up against the established sides we haven't always looked like we believe we can beat them.  If this can change, then it is those established sides that we will be attacking next season.

Ferguson played on this before the game - the hint that City players wouldn't be able to cope with the big occasion as well as United would - and for the first half-an-hour or so this looked like it was to be the case.  A bit of a blunder between Barry and Lescott on the edge of the box allowed United to pick their way through the City defence and Joe Hart made an excellent save - only to see a more presentable chance squandered seconds later.  But from then in, City pushed up and in the final stages of the first half looked the more likely to score.  Barry rippled the side netting, Balotelli smacked one at goal from as far out as possible, Lescott awkwardly volleyed over, and Kompany produced a smart curling shot around the post.  This little spell helped to settle the nerves.

City came flying out after the interval (apart from the obligatory 'make the opponents wait on the pitch' tactic) and the pressing of Gareth Barry, David Silva and Yaya Toure forced the goal out of nothing.  Barry chased the lost cause and then a complete shambles of mistakes pushed the ball to Yaya who, in his calm storm of power and poise, bounded past Vidic and stroked the ball home.

The fear of forty minutes of nerves and panic never came to fruition - with City still pressing before Scholes decided to spike Zabaleta in the hip - with Nani's deflected free kick the closest United could suggest to a comeback.

Yaya was magnificent; it seemed he has been saving all of his energy for this game and looked like he could hardly move by the end.  Whilst his work rate has been questioned at times this season, you can see these high pedigree players come into their own in the big matches.

Zabaleta and De Jong were typically busy on their returns to the side - and that added bite was something that was missing earlier in the week.  Balotelli kept his cool (apart from one little piece of 'mischief' at the end!) and held up the ball well enough for no one to mention the absence of Tevez.  From a man who doesn't celebrate, it was heartening to see him get so involved in the post match jubilation.

It was celebrated like the cup final itself but, if Mancini is right, then something else was being celebrated here.  A big party to mark the moves to 'change the history of the club'.  However, as Mancini and the City fans are equally aware, there is still another game to win if we want to banish the 'typical City' moniker from this cup run.

Topical City: False Dawn Shinawatra

The third issue of monthly City fanzine, Topical City, is out now.  If you wish to read it, as you should, then follow this link and click on either the flash or non-flash version of the magazine.

This month I have written an article on the first day of the 2007/2008 season - the first competitive game of Shinawatra's reign at the club - and try to argue that this was the first day in the modern era of the football club.  The article starts below and can be read in its entirety in Topical City magazine.

11^th August 2007.  The opening day of the season had taken us away to East London and a game against West Ham at the Boleyn Ground.  As we stepped out of the tube station and into the late summer sunshine, those usual feelings of trepidation and doubt were outweighed by something different, something new.

The previous season had ended with a long slog of drab, hopeless football.  Stuart Pearce’s trusty Beanie Horse had run out of luck and City had not scored a home league goal since New Year’s Day.  There was a tangible sense of impending doom about the club.  If the lucky horse no longer delivered, what hope was there for the season to come?

Step up, the ‘fit-and-proper’ saviour, Thaksin Shinawatra.  The FA agreed that our new charismatic owner needed a break from ‘politically motivated’ bitchiness, and the former Thai Prime Minister came in and injected, that vital football fan ingredient, hope into the football club.  The week before the start of the season, after showcasing his new football team against Valencia at home (a David Silva goal settled the tie – I wonder what happened to him?), Thaksin treated the City fans to a party in Albert Square.  Whilst those who went down into central Manchester after the game were guzzling down the complimentary Thai Green Curry, Shinawatra took the microphone and serenaded the dumbfounded Blues with the club anthem, Blue Moon.  

To read on, turn to page eight of the new issue of Topical City magazine.

City 1 - 0 Wigan: Match report

It looked like it was going to be one of those days when Conor Sammon pushed the ball seemingly past Hart and into the bottom corner with seconds remaining - but some marvellous late turn of the ball sped it past the post and ensured a welcome three points for City.  Wigan's second half performance meant it was a close run encounter, but the victory allows City to consolidate a top four position with Tottenham and United both facing difficult games today.

City played some impressive stuff at times in the first half - quite often just a pass or touch too many in some scintillating, quick-flowing moves.  Silva was at the heart of most of them - finding room to manoeuvre down the left hand side - but the multiple one-twos between Tevez and Balotelli were also a joy to watch.  As the person who sits behind me was at pains to point out to the whole stand, all this pretty football is pointless without an end product, and City were perhaps guilty of trying to walk it in at times but, as a show of quality and growing understanding between our players, this style was good to see.  

Perhaps strange then that our only breakthrough of the game came through a comedy of errors on the part of the Wigan back line.  A slip from Caldwell gave Silva the space to roll a shot in at the near post and Al Habsi will want to forget the rest.  A howler of the first degree.

Wigan had their moments in the first half, with Victor Moses getting quite a bit of joy with his speed and trickery against Zabaleta, but it was in the second that they started to cause City the problems.  Sammon's late miss was one of four fairly presentable chances in the half - McCarthy's drive from the edge of the box, Alcaraz's knock against the post, and Rodallega's weak finish from just outside the box.  Whilst Wigan fans will be encouraged by the style of play they were putting together, their impotence in front of goal will worry them just as much.

City will be worried they let such a promising start descend into such a close encounter but the three points are what matters and City had to return to winning ways in the league here.

Again, there is concern over the form of our captain, Tevez.  A series of head down runs into crowds of players and the occasional sulk counters his fantastic work rate - and he will need to be a little less greedy if he is going to be part of an effective team display.  He has been out of sorts since the derby game and, if he is to feature, City will need more from him in the coming weeks.

Lescott had another good game at the back and is on a fine run of form - which is ideal in the light of the Kolo revelations (a man, it could be said, that he had already taken the place of).  Kompany's return was very welcome, as the announcer said at every opportunity, despite only missing two games - and it was good to see De Jong back in action too.

City will need these players back for the run of games in March - starting with the long and chilly trip out to Kiev on Thursday.  With the temperatures still knocking around minus ten, I'm sure a good number of players will make the most of the snood before it is banned from our pitches.

City 1 - 1 Fulham: Return of the draw specialist

Fulham earned their point yesterday in the face of a rather flat City performance - extending our poor recent home form against the London side (one victory in the past eight seasons).  As a frustrated Mancini is probably all too aware, these are the sorts of games that we should be winning in the race for a Champions' League spot.

There was a moment about half way through the second half when Pablo Zabaleta ran some thirty yards to block a defender's clearance, before turning (possibly in the direction of Jerome Boateng - who had just backed out of a challenge he was clear favourite to win) and gesturing that the team needed more aggression and desire.  In some ways Zabaleta's frustration summed up the afternoon.  

Even though it is a weak excuse, the team certainly looked jaded and this could be symptomatic of games every three or four days since the Manchester derby with a squad that is getting more and more depleted.  By contrast, Fulham have just returned from a break in the Algarve.  City will get very little sympathy for such worries, with the strength of the squad we have, and I am not suggesting that this should excuse the performance yesterday, but it probably is starting to have an effect on the players who have to play all the games.  Regardless, if all the players had the same attitude as Pablo Zabaleta, then City would always out-compete teams.  

I would argue that only four outfield starting players performed to an expected level yesterday: Zabaleta, Lescott, Barry and, despite Mancini's comments after the game, Mario Balotelli.  Despite the odd frustrating moment, Balotelli actually worked quite hard for the team yesterday - often doubling up as a left-sided midfielder and covering Kolarov.  Balotelli's was more of a team performance than he put in against Aris, for example, and I thought he looked more settled, rather than trying to pull off the outlandish all the time - which has often been the case as he has tried to impress.  His goal was brilliantly taken and he was our main attacking threat, as Tevez had one of those days when he tries to run through people, on his own, and without realising there is too much of Hangeland to run through.    

Taking Tevez out of the equation, our top three performers this season were missing - Kompany, Silva and De Jong - and Mancini will be hoping their calming, creative and crushing respective influences will be returning soon.  Without Silva there is a noticeable lack of verve and impetus from midfield going forward - and City's midfield struggled to offer many scraps for the strikers.  Yaya Toure cut a particularly frustrated figure after the Fulham midfield kept him well shackled - after being a very influential figure in the excellent performance at Craven Cottage, he was almost anonymous here.  

Fulham did play very well though and their goal was of top quality - fans around me were trying to pin blame on moments up to a minute earlier, but the speed and precision of the move and Andy Johnson's delivery deserved the moment.  

Overreactions abound, as ever, when results don't go the way you want them to, but this is just one result in a string of very good home results and performances - and, despite what you may presume reading some of the reactions across the internet, it was still a point.  

On an entirely different note, the atmosphere was about as flat as the performance yesterday.  I know the tiny Fulham following support didn't help matters (the South stand had already decided it would be better to pick on other stands rather than the away fans they could hardly see by about five minutes in), but the home support was hardly conducive to a passion-filled performance from the players.  I know there is a little of the chicken and the egg about this - should the players excite the fans to an extent? - but it was pretty flat following the atmosphere against Aris.

Maybe the City fans were just a little bewildered due to the slightly peculiar 'televisation' of our half-time.  I may be a bit old-fashioned/grumpy, but one of the bonuses of going to live football is that you escape fifteen minutes of football punditry in the break.  This is nothing against the people involved - I'm sure what they had to say was quite interesting, and I don't mind having endless replays on the big screens, but I'd rather hear the murmurings of the crowd at half-time than long pieces of punditry on what was a quite uneventful first-half anyway.  Oh well...  

City 3 - 0 Aris: The Fantastic Four unleashed

Mancini unleashed City's dream attacking quartet for the first time as the Blues eased past Aris Thessaloniki last night.  A front four of Tevez, Dzeko, Silva and Balotelli is about as good as it gets, and was more than enough to get through an Aris side who came to stifle but were unprepared for the number of attacking players that would be coming at them.   Speaking of this formation - on one of the first opportunities he has had to use all four together - Mancini said:

"I thought we did well and in the first half I was very pleased.

The problem comes when we don't have the ball. If we don't close down every situation, it could be difficult for us.

We can play this formation but not often, unless we improve."

Optimistically, the answer to the 'problem' could be a fit Nigel de Jong.  Although, in the first half especially, there was an effort from all the front four, Balotelli included, to get back and cover the wide midfield slots.  So whilst Mancini's words are obviously a warning to City fans not to expect to see this fantasy quartet too often, he had probably seen enough last night to see that it can work against teams who come to defend.

Aris, unfortunately for their excellent travelling fans, were not a particularly difficult obstacle to overcome.  After the blistering pace of the opening quarter of an hour, City rarely had to up the tempo beyond comfort to see out the tie and book an altogether more difficult encounter against Dynamo Kiev in the last 16.

The Aris fans were fantastically orchestrated from the bottom of the stand and moved as one the whole night.  There was perhaps only a three second lull after Dzeko opened the scoring before they started up again.  Although my favourite piece from their repertoire was a Poznan-esque move to the sound of what I am pretty sure was 'jingle bells' - an ultra masculine, intimidatory form of jingle bells.

Dzeko's two brilliantly taken goals mean that he has now scored 4 in 7 starts - which shows what a farce all the snap judgements have been.  He was always going to need time to bed in, yet, as a 'settling in' goal ratio, that is not a bad return - and by his own admission, 'we ain't seen nothing yet.'

The injury to Kompany is the only worrying thing to come out of the night.  He has been colossal for City this season and was putting in another fine performance before the knock on his hip.  Early murmurings suggest he may be fit for Sunday, which would be a relief - but early murmurings rarely have the full story when it comes to knocks and injuries.  Here's wishing him a speedy recovery!

City 5 - 0 Notts County: Match report

There seem to be two schools of thought amongst managers when it comes to tackling opponents from a number of divisions down.  The first one is you take a pick from your promising young players and reserve players with something to prove and hope their desire to show their worth overcomes the motivation deficit that can be apparent when playing 'weaker' sides.  The second is that you pick a strong side who may find motivation difficult, but will have sufficient class to see out the fixture in the end.  Yesterday's game was very much the latter.  Energy comparisons in the first twenty minutes between, say, Yaya Toure and Neal Bishop would undoubtedly reflect badly on the City man.

Yet, to an extent, this is to be expected.  Whilst this was a huge occasion for the County players - people like Yaya, whilst complacency may be the wrong word, would see it as a necessary complication on the way to a bigger prize.  Thus, for the first twenty minutes, County were on top.  First to every ball, stifling City's attempts at patient build-up, and creating openings as well.  Hawley's shot against the post was a little too close for comfort.

After that initial surge, however, City began to take control - and largely in a completely new way.  Vieira said after the game that the team's height should make us more effective at set plays than we have been, and most of our attempts before the break came from teasing free-kicks from Kolarov or corners.

Balotelli should have had a penalty.  His reputation is beginning to precede him now and whilst he may not be ideal to referee, if someone stands on your ankle in the box then it is still generally a penalty.

The late flurry of goals in the last ten minutes may have been less than charitable in the face of the effort from the away side but, for the hopeful, it did offer some glimpses of Tevez and Dzeko working together as a partnership.  The excellent quick feet of Dzeko that set Tevez clear for his goal was quickly repaid by the cutely placed cross Tevez laid on for Dzeko to grab his first goal in front of the City fans.  Striking partnerships are things that take time to fully develop - as an acute understanding of each other's game is vital - and this can only come with games.

If City can overcome Villa in the 5th round, Everton await us.  Without getting too ahead of ourselves, Everton are something of a bogey side at home - but, to end on a wonderful FA Cup cliché: as Notts County proved, and Leicester before them, there are no easy games if you want to go all the way in cup competition.

Derby day reflections

They are hard moments to take at the best of times, but with the quality of Rooney's goal came the horrible realisation: I am never going to escape it.  Last season's goal from the time beyond time was similar - no matter how hard I tried, there was always a 'highlights of the season' montage where Michael Owen's detestable, shocked face jumped out the screen at me.  And that goal was only remarkable for the circumstances.  Rooney's bit of magic - variously the best goal of his career or the best goal ever scored at Old Trafford etc - came amidst a fairly anonymous performance, but at the top level, as this game undoubtedly is, these little bits of quality decide games and it is just unfortunate for City that it was at the other end.

It is difficult to offer any impartiality during the passions of the derby, so to quote The Independent's Ian Herbert "City were the better side, in fact, even if United's capacity never to know they are beaten won through."  Although City will obviously be disappointed to let United extend their advantage at the top, the performance was encouraging.  Both sides lined up in the same formation, but there wasn't really the defensive approach that has become the norm against the top sides this season.  Statistics-wise, City created marginally more chances than the hosts, and a considerably greater amount if you take away wild long range efforts by Nani.  The main difference was the final finish.  Whilst Rooney plucked out a bit of brilliance from a quiet performance, our main goal-threat had a quiet contribution upfront too - there aren't too many obvious goal threats in the team when Tevez is limited (the next three highest goalscorers this season were unavailable: Balotelli, Johnson and Adebayor) - so whilst Silva was excellent again in the role of creator, that final finish eluded us.

It was a return to strength defensively and there were excellent performances from Vincent Kompany and Micah Richards.  The general rule for a successful defensive partnership at City seems to be Kompany plus one - and Lescott has impressed in his last few appearances alongside the Belgian.  I felt he was a little unlucky to lose his place to a returning Kolo last time, but it shows that the position as Kompany's partner is up for grabs.

Micah is continuing his improvement under Mancini and appeared to play with the confidence that was synonymous with his burst on to the footballing scene as a teenager.  If he keeps up his concentration and his fitness, then this renaissance is very good news for both City and England.

The result will probably spell the end of vague title speculations in the press and this has to be a good thing for City's season.  If City keep playing the way they have been, they can remain in touching distance - and this will probably be the best way to achieve the real target - Champions League football - and if that is achieved, we can start looking at the next steps.

Saturday's Cameos: Shauny's Welcome Boost and Abdul Razak

Saturday's game against West Brom saw two popular cameo performances: the introduction of Abdul Razak for his City debut and the return of Shaun Wright-Phillips to the first team. 

Abdul Razak, as has been widely reported, has hardly featured for the EDS this term - only recently making his debut against Bury.  His only previous performance was the pre-season friendly against Macclesfield, where I was impressed enough with him to mention his name in my tiny review of the game back in July.  So his inclusion against West Brom did come as a bit of a surprise, although beady eyes may have spotted he was part of the wider squad that faced Birmingham. 

The fantasically helpful MCFC Reserves and Academy website states his lack of opportunities to date were due to work permit issues but, with them cleared, we should now see more of the promising eighteen year old. 

Razak became the ninth player Mancini has promoted from the academy and, although it can be argued that these players are not playing crucial parts in games, it must be encouraging for the younger players in the squad that players are getting involved at the top level.  Mancini's nine, however well they are ultilised, compares favourably to Hughes' one, for example. 

For a player like Shaun Wright-Phillips, on the other hand, the reception he got on Saturday will provide him with the boost he desperately needs.  Astonishingly, Shaun's last involvement in the Premier League came on September 19th, away to Wigan, in a game in which he came on under similar circumstances - with the game won.  He has played a handful of Europa League games in between, but has largely been overlooked for the league games. 

With Adam Johnson injured, Shauny has an opportunity to claw his way back into first team contention.  Mancini originally bemoaned the loss of Johnson by saying there was no one like him at the club - no one who would run at players with speed - but somewhere, forgotten and waiting his chance was one of England's wingers at the last World Cup. 

The trouble with Wright-Phillips is that he is at his best when he acts on impulse, and the enemy of impulse is uncertainty and low confidence.  Slow Shaun down, give him too many options, and his final product often comes up short.  Let him fly at players, running with his touch and balance, and anything can happen.  Let him shoot without looking! 

Arguably Shaun's style doesn't suit the patient passing formula that fits the current team and few expected to see him beyond the end of the January transfer window.  So the cheers that met him as Mancini sent him down the line to warm up were probably as much out of welcome surprise and support than anything else.  Everytime he touched the ball there was that rush of excitement and anticipation amongst the crowd - and when he hared forward from his own half and, to the exasperation of Edin Dzeko, opted to go it alone, he almost rode the expectations of the blues in the stand. 

Whilst he has spent most of the season looking lost and dejected, a confident Shauny can undoubtedly be an asset for the club and hopefully the crowd's reaction at the weekend will remind him of that.

Topical City Magazine article

For any of you who are not aware of the Topical City e-magazine, issue 2 is now available for your perusal.  

There are some twenty articles on all things Manchester City and it should entertain you until the next one comes out in a months time!

It is also an opportunity to see some of my words in a different location, as I think about the transfer window and the future of our club... 

TOPICAL CITY issue 2

City 3 - 0 West Brom: Di Matteo loses his job as Tevez strikes

What a day of football yesterday.  The top team lose to the team rooted to the bottom of the table; the team in second are pegged back from four goals clear; and City win.  Can't ask for much more than that really.  Although it was a bit of a peculiar game.  David Platt bemoaned City's complacency in the second half - and having strolled around with purpose in the first half (to some success), the strolling lost its focus in the second and West Brom contributed to an attacking game. 

One of the reasons Di Matteo has been sacked today may be because of their leaky defence.  They looked adventurous going forward yesterday, with lots of promise, but, especially in the first half, they always looked vulnerable at the back.  With David Silva pulling the strings, it was always going to be difficult for West Brom to contain us, and in the early stages City played some impressive football.  The two goals in five minutes really gave City some comfort and Thomas's daft handball put an end to the game as a contest after forty minutes. 

In acknowledgement of Kolarov's superior attacking abillities, the Serbian left-back was given the left-wing to play with, and his hammer of a left foot was a regular threat in the first half: picking out Tevez with an exquisite cross in the opening minutes and unleashing an improbable thunderbolt that needed to be brushed onto the bar.  We are yet to see if this is a permanent plan, but Kolarov can offer cover for Johnson in that attacking role. 

David Silva has shown all his attacking flair in recent months, but he also works extremely hard for the team.  I suspected that he got unusually stuck in yesterday and a cursory play around on the Guardian Chalkboards shows that he made more successful tackles and interceptions than any of City's midfield or forwards.  Not a bad defensive contribution from someone many thought would be too small for the Premiership's supposed brawn.  He has been superb for us lately and is the driving force of all our attacking play. 

West Brom asked questions of City's defence and of Joe Hart, but it is pleasing to come away with a clean sheet, especially as it brings to a close an unwelcome recent run of goals conceded. 

With United and Chelsea losing, and Arsenal drawing, City capitalised on an opportunity to keep ground on those at the top - and as long as we are in touching distance, the more likely it is we will be seeing Champions League football next season, which still has to be the ultimate goal.

City 4 - 3 Wolves: Match report

Boring, boring City?  After the mild criticism that followed the impressive nullifying of Arsenal, we have seen two games fraught with defensive tomfoolery.  In the end, with Tevez already withdrawn to receive his standing ovation at 4-2, Mancini identified the comfort zone too early, and a dubious third for Wolves ensured an exciting finale for the neutral.

Wolves started very strongly and for the first half an hour were dominant - bumbling in a bizarre opener to give them the lead they deserved.  It was a spirited opening from them, full of energy, and on the evidence of that, they should have enough about them to avoid the drop this season.  However, it would've been impossible for them to keep up those levels of energy and commitment and, as half time approached, City started to show signs of a recovery.  Kolo's goal had the same scrappy feel to the Wolves opener but it was the vital foothold for City to stamp their presence on the game.  

Carlos Tevez came out after half-time showing his captaincy skills in the only way he can - to lead the fight himself.  In a breathtaking twenty minutes or so of football after the interval, City ran riot.  Tevez's superb slalom run through the centre of the Wolves defence sparked City's attacking spell.  The flowing counter-attack that started and ended at Yaya Toure's feet was almost equally impressive and the one-two between Dzeko and Tevez will hopefully be the early signs of a flourishing partnership.  

Mancini changed the shape a little in the second half, with Tevez moving closer to Dzeko and Barry moving wider into a left-sided midfield position.  It almost resembled a 4-4-2 and, on evidence of the first-half, Mancini will have some thinking to do to work out the best way to incorporate Tevez, Dzeko and Silva (when the latter is fit enough to start).  Perhaps the diamond formation that was used a couple of times in pre-season, only never to be seen again is the answer here, for example:

Hart

Zabaleta,  Kolo,  Kompany,  Kolarov

De Jong

Yaya Toure,  Barry

Silva

Tevez,  Dzeko

How ever Mancini chooses to solve it, it does look like an attractive problem to have.  After over a month out on the German winter break, Dzeko, despite not getting on the scoresheet, had an impressive début.  As well as having two good feet and vision, he looked a reliable target man - winning the majority of aerial balls that were put up to him.  With the Wolves defence preoccupied with keeping tight to Dzeko, it allowed Tevez the opportunity to find free space in attacking areas - and if City are to play with both of them (complete with Silva behind them), then defences are going to be hard pressed to deal with that sort of quality.  

Lescott's clumsy and needless challenge on Doyle gave Wolves a way back into the game and it made for an exciting end-to-end finish.  Mancini looked frustrated that his usually so well-drilled defence were capable of letting things slide into the realms of the uncertain from a 4-1 lead, but City fans knew better.  When a couple of fans tentatively tried to sing "We are top of the league" at 4-2 with little over five minutes to go, the hostility from some fans quickly put a stop to it.  There is always that healthy fear that anything can happen.  But as the Poznan-Mexican wave around the ground showed, the City fans are starting to enjoy this again - and whilst sitting top in mid-January, why not?!

Arsenal 0 - 0 City: Match report

Arguments about style are all besides the point here - and mostly come from understandably frustrated Arsenal fans.  Arsenal, in fine form as they are, are capable of tearing most teams apart at the Emirates - a fact aptly displayed in a shaky opening ten minutes last night - so, to shut up shop and come away with a point is a great result for City, especially considering how close the sides are in the table.  Come the end of the season, the point (and preventing Arsenal from taking three) may be worth more than knowing we'd valiantly thrown everything into an away defeat.

Arsenal are renowned for playing the most attractive football in the country nowadays and their transformation from George Graham's methodical team of the early nineties to Wenger's school of footballing purity today would appear to lead them to demand the same from everyone else.  But it is more simple than that, most teams will go to the Emirates to defend - just as most teams come to Eastlands to defend (ones with means, such as United and Chelsea, as well as ones without) - it is just that this was an opportunity for Arsenal to get one over on their new rivals and they were mercilessly thwarted - which is as understandably frustrating for Arsenal fans, as it is a pleasing result for City fans.

It may have seemingly lacked any ambition, but it did show a resoluteness that City have only recently acquired.  Taking last night out of the equation, City have been playing quite open attacking football for a couple of months now.  This has largely been down to the combinations of David Silva and Yaya Toure.  If last night highlights anything it is how reliant City have become on David Silva as a creative force.  Yaya can do it, and in the first half he was our only real attacking threat (before he was pulled back in the second) but, without Silva's ability, there was no one else in midfield who was capable of putting their foot on the ball.

Arguably this is where the game became so difficult for us.  The skill and movement of Wilshere, Fabregas, Nasri et al, bypassed Barry and De Jong for most of the game (not helped by two particularly soft early bookings given to the pair) - and Barry's woeful passing, in particular, meant we rarely got a foothold on the game.  Yaya was then played in his Barcelona position for one of the first times since his arrival at the club - and this stout defence was enough to reduce Arsenal to long range efforts.  Joe Hart's excellent save from Van Persie's sweet strike was the closest Arsenal got after the opening quarter of an hour.

One would hope that common sense will prevail in the case of Zabaleta's red card.  If standing up to Sagna isn't a red card offence, then it will have to be rescinded.  It was such a nothing incident - Sagna's 'headbutts' were ridiculous and would probably be better classed as posturing, but in the murky world of FA rules, they may be enough for Sagna to retain his punishment.  The general stance on appeals seem to be: 'if something happened, leave it as it was; if nothing happened, remove the punishment.'  I would be surprised if Zabaleta doesn't get off.

It may not have been an entertaining watch, but the point is worth more to City than Arsenal - hence the din of frustration that met the final whistle.  A poor/tired midfield display made for a more uncomfortable contest than was presumably intended, but the end justifies the means and a point taken at the Emirates from an in form Arsenal team is about as good a result as I could have hoped for last night.

City 1 - 0 Blackpool: Match report

Despite taking six points from them this season now, Holloway's "surprise" package have been a tough opponent for City this campaign.  They were an entirely different proposition from Aston Villa earlier this week: a side full of confidence and boasting the league's second best away record (second to City!).  We had to sit through a nervy ending, yet the game could have been very different if it wasn't for wasteful finishing.

On another day Carlos Tevez may have scored four goals: the penalty miss, his slip when he had rounded Kingson, the open goal he flashed wide from a pull-back, plus one from a number of slightly less presentable chances.  Every miss made him more determined and slightly less composed (the shots were lashed wide with increasing ferocity/frustration), to the point that by the third miss on my list he raised his hand in apology to the fans.  It was just one of those days for him, but consolation can be taken from how many scoring positions he got himself into.

The flip-side to not putting the chances away is the nerves towards the end.  Blackpool played with some style at times - led by the deep-lying orchestrator Charlie Adam - and the introduction of Matt Phillips at half-time gave the City back-line something to think about.  Kolarov, who doesn't look too comfortable with pacey wingers, was withdrawn as a result.  Credit has to go to Blackpool for attacking City - very few teams do at Eastlands nowadays - but the game should have been over by half-time.

One slack back-pass threatened to ruin it, but Joleon Lescott had another top quality game at centre half covering for the absence of Kolo Toure.  He has been open to criticism this season but this has largely been because he has been playing at left-back - where his clumsy passing is more exposed.  At centre-half he has looked dominant and full of confidence.  January must be a time of worry for players who are on the fringes of the team, as Lescott was, but he is responding to that pressure in the right way at the moment.

Nigel de Jong rightly won the man of the match award and showed none of the effects of playing an important part in all of City's games over the festive period in a typically energetic display.

Adam Johnson got his reward for his fine display against Aston Villa with another start here.  Once again he showed a more measured performance and is beginning to prove that he is up to the challenge of becoming more of a team player.

City have taken maximum points post-Christmas to remain [joint] top going into the game at the Emirates on Wednesday night.  There will be an anxious wait to see if David Silva will be fit for that game - considering how important he has become to the team - but Ballotelli, fresh from a humorous exclusive with the Mail that shows it is not all frowns and tantrums, should be available to make his return.