City-Wolves Live Blog and Match Thread!
By: Thad |
1 Comment
Manchester City’s first home match of the season kicks off in a few minutes against Wolves–follow along for a blow-by-blow account from a City perspective…. Read the rest of this entry »
Category: Team News
Towards a General Theory of the Football Club’s Soul
By: Thad | 7 Comments
A couple of weeks ago in this space we posed the question of whether football clubs can have a soul. A number of folks responded, and most said yes, football clubs can have a soul.
I agree; but not all clubs have the same kinds of soul.
Read the rest of this entry »
Category: Team NewsCity-Blackburn Live Blog/Match Thread
By: Thad | 3 Comments
It’s minutes away from the big kickoff on the 2009-10 Premier League season! Starting in a few minutes we’ll be live-blogging the action from Ewood Park.
One big surprise to the City starting 11: there is a place for Micah Richards, who had limited preseason action. It’ll be Bridge, Toure, Dunne, and Richards along the back, SWP, Barry and Ireland in midfield, Robinho, Adebayor, Bellamy in front. Given in goal.
Blackburn are putting out Robinson, Warnock, Samba, Givet, Jacobsen, Pedersen, N’Zonzi, Andrews, Diouf, Roberts, and McCarthy.
It’s a minute’s applause for Sir Bobby Robson, the whole park joining in. City’s fans are in blue but the players are in the black away strip, Blackburn in its familiar home strip.
2nd minute. City have had most of the ball very early on but nothing of consequence so far. Dunne had to make a clearance in the box, City move on the break–Adebayor SCORES!!! GOAL!!!
SWP broke out on the right wing, then played a great ball back for Adebayor (who had played the original ball), who smashed it to Robinson’s left. A terrific goal and a dream start to the season. 1-0, City!!
5th minute. Hughes’s decision to field an attacking lineup provides immediate dividends.
6th minute. Nice tackle from Bridge wins the ball back on the edge of City’s box. City need to hold on the ball and lead for a bit, but Dunne commits a foul 45 yards from goal. Pedersen lined up the free kick and put it a mile over the goal. Replay shows just how calm SWP was with the ball to set up Adebayor on the goal.
9th minute. Dangerous moment there off Blackburn’s long throw, resulting in a corner that Given fists away. City clear and break again through SWP, but this time it comes to nothing, Barry played the wrong ball.
12th minute. Bellamy just offside on Ireland’s chipped through ball, he would have been through. So far City look good but Blackburn have asked some questions with crosses and long balls into the box, trying to take advantage perhaps of City’s new defensive partnership.
14th minute. Another cross from Jacobsen that McCarthy gets a touch to but it’s well wide. One senses that one goal is not going to win this game for City.
16th. It’s ping-pong football at the moment, Blackburn are playing very direct and City are trying to do instant counter-attacks after recovering the ball. This time City keep it a big longer but Bellamy again is just offside–that one was closer. Carlos Tevez looks on from the bench.
17th minute. Richards with another clearance, he has looked just fine so far.
18th minute. Dunne has had his critics this summer but what Blackburn are doing suit his game–lots of headers need to to be won. Best chance yet falls to Roberts after some head tennis in the box but he side foots it over.
20th minute. It’s a hat-trick of offsides for Bellamy. But they are getting more and more fractional. Maybe it’s the #39 number he is wearing that used to belong to Anelka, who was always offside when he wasn’t scoring goals.
22nd minute. One would like to see City keep it on the floor a bit more, there’s no one out there inclined to play the simple ball. Pedersen briefly won the ball in dangerous decision but it’s a good recovery for City to get the ball back. Barry fouled in the center circle.
23rd minute. Nearly a bad miscue there on a long bouncing ball that fell awkwardly between Dunne and Given, Dunne left it but Given needed two tries to claim it. More pressure from Rovers.
26th minute. Blackburn line up another free kick, this one about 30 yards out. McCarthy took it but Given saw it all the way and gathers it easily.
27th minute. But Blackburn come right back at City and win a corner. Rovers have had the upper hand the last few minutes. Samba heads it in and Given makes a great save. Blackburn come back yet again and win another corner.
29th minute. Given takes the corner but his quick clearance for Robinho goes out of bounds. Replay shows Samba beat Richards to the ball on that corner kick a couple of minutes ago, Given had to go to his left and low to put a strong arm on that one. Finally City get the ball down into the final third but Barry’s cross from the left finds no one.
31th minute. City need one of three things to happen now: a) grab another goal on the counter b) control ball much better or c) pray to make it to halftime and make some tactical changes. City go for b) there with some nice spell of possession, SWP ran into the box but couldn’t control it cleanly.
32nd minute. Another long throw on the left from Pedersen ends with McCarthy smashing it so awry on the volley even Big Sam has a laugh.
35th minute. Blackburn fans are chanting “you’ve only come for the money” to City’s players.
37th minute. Excellent Blackburn move as Roberts beat Dunne for pace, then pulled it back for McCarthy, but he couldn’t get a strong shot off and City get out of that one.
38th minute. Robinho with an excellent strike from left of the box forces a good save from Robinson and a corner, but nothing comes of the City corner.
40th minute. Given is getting plenty of catching practice but he dropped that one to no consequence. Nice turn by Adebayor finds Bellamy, Pedersen recovers well to head Bellamy’s cross over for a corner.
41st minute. SWP tried to dribble through tight space in the box but it’s cleared away. On the ensuring throw Barry does well to win a foul 3 yards outside the area on the right side of the box.
42nd minute. Robinho gets it wrong there, Barry’s free kick was played beautifully and Robinho was unmarked on the back post. It would have been difficult to score from that angle but Robinho flubbed it well wide of the target.
43rd minute. Knock on wood, Toure has had a stellar first half winning balls at the back.
44th minute. Given came for the ball on a long throw but didn’t get the ball–another dangerous moment but City survive. Another long throw and the ball falls to Andrews who blasts it at Dunne’s arm, a half-hearted call for a penalty but the ref says no. Replay shows Dunne’s arm was tucked into the body.
46th minute. City have the ball for a good spell but Diouf stays on the floor after his challenge on Adebayor and City sportingly play it out. Mike Dean doesn’t think Diouf really needed to stay down and I agree.
There’s the halftime whistle and City will be happy to have the lead intact. After the first 10 or 15 minutes, Blackburn had the better of the game with their direct approach causing City some problems. City have looked unsteady at times at the back but so far but Given has only had to make one quality save. It’s the in-between long balls over the top and crosses that are causing more of a problem.
Will be interesting to see if Hughes rings in a change while there’s still a lead to protect. de Jong might well enter the fray, and surely at some point in the 2nd half Tevez will make an appearance.
48th minute. City need to do a better job wining the 2nd ball off these headers. Bellamy gets it on the left, the ball’s worked around left to right and back again, Bridge ended up taking a shot from outside the box that goes wide. That was better from City.
50th minute. Now Blackburn keep it on the floor for a brief spell but end up losing it over the touch line. Ireland breaks down the right side but can’t control an ambitious through ball. Meanwhile, rain has descended on to the park, conditions might get quite sloppy before this is over. This is English football!
52nd minute. Bob Dylan was wrong when he said a hard rain’s gonna fall. A hard rain IS falling on Ewood Park. Blackburn won’t mind this, how will City cope?
53rd minute. Warnock did well there to keep SWP from getting onto Robinho’s ball into the box, playing it off the City man for a goal kick.
55th minute. It’s an even game at the moment but that represents an improvement, City are playing better this half. That was an excellent team move spreading the ball across the pitch, ending with a Warnock tackle and a City throw. Some good passing and movement.
57th minute. Lovely shoulder fake that Robinho just used to get past Givet was worth a fiver alone, though nothing comes of it.
58th minute. “Blue Moon” is ringing through the stadium, City fans are cheered but what’s going on last few minutes. City still need a second, one feels.
59th minute. And Blackburn show why with a very dangerous cross from Diouf, it’s headed across but no one is there. Then on the follow up Roberts is wide open from 12 yards and Given has to make his second quality save of the match.
61st minute. City just kept the ball for a good 15 passes, ending with a cross from Bellamy that doesn’t find Adebayor. Blackburn now have the ball on the left with yet another dangerous throw from Pedersen coming up…
62nd minute. So close for Robinho! A great counter-attack eventually gives Robinho the chance to shoot on his left from just outside the area on the right, hard and low but Robinson does really well to get a hand to it. City have it again and Bellamy wins another corner.
64th minute. Enjoyable game this if you like English football. The rain seems to have gone away for now. Both sides are showing terrific commitment out there.
65th minute. Richard Dunne just knocked over Roberts like a bowling pin with that shoulder charge, judged as fair by the ref. Replay shows Roberts made a meal of that one. Roberts is now coming off and Chelsea loanee Di Santo is on. I’m not sorry to see Roberts go, he’s always caused City problems over the years.
66th minute. Toure did well there to recover after Pedersen was briefly in the clear getting on to the end of a long ball. Tevez is about to come on for City.
67th minute. Tevez on, Bellamy off. Bellamy has done well today. But wait, there’s a hold up because the 4th official putup the wrong number on the sub. Play goes on while that gets sorted out. Mark Hughes is annoyed. Now it’s Robinho that will come off, not Bellamy.
68th minute. Robinho not thrilled to be coming off, though to be fair most would pick Bellamy to play 20 hard minutes in the rain (which is back) to close out a match.
71th minute. Nice move there by City nearly sets up Tevez, Samba got a foot in. Game is in a bit of a lull at the moment, City need to hold its nerve.
72nd minute. Blackburn has yet another corner, City deal with it. Bellamy in the clear, he plays it to Adebayor who unselfishly sets up Ireland, but the pass is not great and Ireland has to use the left foot. Poor shot goes over the bar. That was a good chance….
Skipping ahead to injury time:
The rest of this thread was accidentally deleted, but to make a long story short, Ireland scored a BRILLIANT GOAL in the 91st minute to wrap this one up for City, 2-0. He was played in by SWP, tried to round the keeper, and when Robinson recovered he calmly moved the ball back to the centre before slotting with his right foot into the corner. That was the definition of cool!
Leading up to the goal there were some yellow cards handed out to Richards, Warnock, and Gallagher, and a couple more Blackburn free kicks, including one blazed just over by McCarthy in the 80th minute, and numerous City break-outs that didn’t quite to come to anything. Tevez was involved and looked quite good, his clever run in behind onto SWP’s pass in the 81st minute set him up for a shot that Robinson held well. City had chance after chance to counter before finally finding the net for a second time.
A funny moment at the final whistle as Mark Hughes slipped shaking Big Sam’s hand, but Toure and Dunne did not slip up at the back and they are my men of the match for City. Blackburn’s PA announced Pedersen as Rovers man of the match and that is fair.
An ideal opening start to the campaign for City–excellent early goal, successfully enduring extended pressure as Blackburn came more and more into the game, then re-asserting control in the second half, capped by a brilliant goal from Ireland that we’ll be enjoying on highlight reels for some time. You could hardly have written a better script for the opening day, and the fact that at times it was not pretty and that Blackburn certainly gave City a hard scrap in pouring rain is all the more encouraging.
Plenty to celebrate for City’s players, traveling supporters, and one or two bananas that also braved the rain. Slightly surprising that de Jong did not figure into this at all; rather than change tactics at halftime, Hughes apparently asked his players to be a little more patient and calm in possession. In any case, that was a big improvement after the interval. Shaun Wright-Phillips was immense today, and you just couldn’t take him off; he had assists on both goals and made numerous telling runs.
Category: Team NewsShort and Snappy Season (and Blackburn) Preview
By: Thad | 1 Comment
What more is there to say about the most talked about club of the summer?
You’ll have to click on to find out, but let’s start with a simple thought experiment. Suppose you had a league in which 5 clubs each had an equal chance every year of finishing in the top 4. What would be the likelihood of the exact same 4 of those 5 clubs finishing in the top 4 spots 4 years running? Read the rest of this entry »
Category: Team NewsCity-Celtic live blog! 2-1 City, Full Time
By: Thad | Add Comments
After a brief delay we’ve found a good working stream to view the action from COMS where City are playing Celtic in the final pre-season friendly. City have just taken the lead on a cracking 15th minute goal by Gareth Barry, 1-0 to City.
The goal came on a beautiful cross from right back Zabaleta, it landed in the penalty spot area and Barry deftly knocked it home with his left foot, an unstoppable finish.
17th minute: City forced into an unwelcome change. Toure has a niggle and has come off, Tal Ben Haim is on.
19th minute. City have a strong lineup as we’d expect. Bridge, Tourre, Dunne, Zabaleta and Given at the back, Ireland, Barry, de Jong, SWP, Robinho, and Bellamy
22th minute. Celtic have a corner through City old boy Killen, taking by another old boy Flood. Given had to make a nice save there on Killen’s header.
24th minute. Celtic, in yellow and black stripes, also feature Samaras, who has had one or two boos already (not sure why)–and there’s the equalizer for Celtic, as Killen beats Shay Given. 1-1!
25th minute. Samaras played a beautiful lofted through ball to Killen who got in behind. Samaras looked like Kaka on that one. good finish too.
26th minute. That goal won’t impress critics of City’s defense–you can’t let a through ball down the middle of the pitch beat you so easily. Not sure if it was TBH or Dunne more at fault.
27th minute. Great crowd and atmosphere in the stadium, by the way. Replay shows Dunne did play Killen onside, a well-time run and a great ball but a poor goal for City to concede.
28th minute. City just squander a great chance as Ireland has a bad touch after being played through into the area. Those are the chances we’re used to see him take.
30th. Flood and Robinho battle on the left touchline–a bit of a strange sight. I’ve missed seeing Flood’s distinctive running style!
31th minute. Bellamy, former Celtic man, has barely had a touch; he’s playing in the centre forward position of a 4-3-3. Bridge just tried to spot him but Bellamy could control the pass. Robinho is fouled now 30 yards from goal….
33rd minute. The initial free kick from Bridge cleared easily but a neat follow-up move almost works–but Zabaleta is offside. Celtic go the other way and win a corner through Mizuno.
34th minute. Samaras had a whack there but Dunne deflected it for another corner. Celtic enjoying some pressure at the moment.
35th minute. Decent play there by Robinho to set Bellamy up but the Welsh striker can’t get a shot off. Very entertaining match, this one. Both sides want goals.
36th minute. Half-hearted penalty claims on Ireland’s shot/cross, but it will be merely a corner. On the corner Celtic fans roar as Flood dispossesses Robinho…
38th minute. After a few City passes Robinho moves into the centre of the pitch and lets on fly from 30 yards, but well off target. Celtic fans (many shirtless) are not throwing the ball back.
40th minute. Possession stats say it’s 60-40 City but it feels like a very even match.
43rd minute. Nice counter-attack led by Ireland leads to a corner. That was pretty well-played coming out of the back. Nothing comes of the corner however.
44th minute. I bet Arsene Wenger is (or will be) watching this one with great interest. Cheeky attempt by Mizuno to shoot on a long free kick doesn’t come off.
45th. Tony Mowbray with a smile–a few months ago his West Brom side gave City a great match at COMS in defeat. City there just had the ball for a good 10 seconds in the penalty area but neither Bellamy or Robinho could get a clean shot away.
Halftime whistle! This is about as good as friendly football gets. Both sides have motivation to play well–a good result would give City some confidence heading into the league, and Celtic want to keep the momentum going heading into the Arsenal tie.
Most of the lower sections are occupied but it’s spotty in the upper decks and in the end zones. I’m guessing 25,000 are there but we will see. And yes, Adebayor is on! For de Jong. Bellamy will presumably move to the wing and SWP drop into midfield…
Correction, earlier I said Barry’s goal was on his left foot but the replay seems to show it was the right (not 100% sure!) great finish in either case, do that in the league and it will be on the highlight reels for weeks.
Adebayor is warming up with a few tricks. Could he be about to make his home debut? Tevez is also named on the bench, would be a huge day if he comes on. Also Micah Richards, who is yet to see any preseason action. This was Celtic’s starting lineup for the record: Zaluska, Naylor, Caddis, O’Dea, McCourt, Donati, Flood, Crosas, Killen, Mizuno, Samaras.
46th minute. There’s the kickoff! The stream has moved to www.atdhe.net, for anyone following online…
47th minute. Toure’s early niggle didn’t at all loo serious, for what it’s worth. Given came out of his box to head that one away. Following up Celtic flash the ball across goal but no one can put it home, TBH got an important touch…
48th minute. Adebayor, Bellamy, Robinho all involved in that move but nothing comes of it. Another move through Ireland ends in a curling Robinho shot that’s gathered up at the 2nd attempt. Right back the other way and Given has to go down to scoop up a through ball. End to end stuff!
50th minute. Goal for City!!! Craig Bellamy does really well there, he took down a long ball, took a dribble, beat the defender, then beat the keeper low to the left corner from the right side. Excellent goal! Bellamy making his claim for a starting spot.
52nd minute. Will be interesting to see if Celtic wear down in the 2nd half after their midweek match. Can City drop the hammer? Celtic look there for the taking at the moment.
55th minute. Ireland tried to pick out Adebayor in front of goal but Naylor gets there to head behind. Yet again nothing comes of the corner, however.
57th. Fantastic run by McCourt creates a great chance but Mizuno can’t get on to the cross. On the follow-up play, Samaras shot hard from distance but Given saved easily. McCourt beat 3 City defenders on that move.
58th. Another good break by City that doesn’t quite end up in a chance. Ireland and Barry are going to be a terrific combination in midfield, that much is clear.
59th minute. I like this more attack-minded lineup with SWP in midfield, 3 strikers, no de Jong.
60th minute. Huge ovation–Tevez is warming up on the sideline and applauding the City support!
61th minute. Fortune in, Celtic sub.
62th minute. Another break for City but Bellamy is perhaps too unselfish, he went for the perfect through ball and it didn’t work when he could have had a pop himself. More pressure from City, Robinho tries a trick in the box but can’t keep it long enough to get a shot off.
64th minute. Some good control for City working down the right ends up with a good shot by SWP, but right at the keeper. 7-5 City in shots on target department, now.
65th minute. The moment is here–Tevez has taken off his warm-ups and is coming into the match. Big, big applause for the Argentine. Bellamy is off after a job well done.
66th minute. Tevez wastes no time lunging in on a tackle. City get the ball, Robinho plays it to Tevez who wins a corner.
67th minute. TBH with a slighly risky challenge there on Flood in the box. Celtic corner, and it’s headed over by McDonal. Celtic’s best chance of 2nd half.
69th minute. McGeady has come on. Last 20 minutes should be quite entertaining.
70th minute. Dunne pressured into conceding a soft corner by Fortune–he couldn’t find Given on a back pass. Zabaleta wins the ball on ensuing corner.
71th minute. Adebayor, Tevez, Robinho try to combine that time going forward, but the ball is lost over the end line.
72th minute. Tricky winger time! Petrov and Weiss are coming on, SWP is off as is Robinho.
73rd. This move is a good indication that Weiss is going to be very involved with the first team this season. That’s why Elano was sold.
74th minute. Samaras does a couple of rolls on the floor after Zabaleta catches him on the tackle.
75th minute. Nice turn with the ball by Tevez excites crowd…then a Barry tackle creates another break, and Weiss wins a corner.
76th minute. Has to be said, City have looked dire as ever on these attacking corners today!
77th minute. Triple change for Celtic, Samaras gets some applause all around as he comes off. (Perhaps most recognize it wasn’t his idea to be partnered with Bernardo Corradi in the slowest ever Premiership strike partnership!) Flood is off too. McGinn, Ferry and Fox are in for Celtic.
79th minute. More City pressure, but the flag went up very harshly (i.e. wrongly) against Weiss for offside.
80th. Tevez played in Ireland there who almost got to it for a clear shot. City are well on top but Celtic still look capable of grabbing a goal. City need to be a little careful at the back. Free kick for Celtic 25 yards away..
81th. Fox fired a tricky one in that Given is able to grab cleanly on the bounce–he had no room for error on that as Celtic were following up.
83rd minute. Tevez pressuring the keeper almost caused a problem. Celtic have had one or two slightly strange passes played at the back.
84th minute. Game in danger of petering out a bit. I’m greedy and want Adebayor or Tevez to grab a goal.
85th minute. There’s some better pressure, Tevez and Zabaleta try a one-two in the box but Celtic suss that one out. Another corner the other way for Celtic.
86th minute. Celtic played the corner short and got in a fine cross to O’Dea, whose firm header from 7 yards went wide. Could easily have been a goal there. City need to be careful!
87th minute. Is it just me or does TBH look a bit fitter and quicker than this time a year ago? He has done okay today. There’s another City move in the box but Adebayor’s cross is easily dealt with.
88th minute. Another corner for Celtic. Can City deal with it better this time? Sort of…TBH wins the ball, but knocks over Donati in process. Ref stops play, but there’s no foul. TBH won the ball cleanly in the air and caught Donati on the follow through.
90th minute. Celtic having too much of the ball for comfort; 2 minutes to be added.
91th minute. City finally get it for a spell and are playing some proper keep ball.
92nd minute. Barry announced as man of the match–no arguments here. One last shot from distance comes in by Ferry, well wide. That should be it…
And there’s the final whistle…3 valuable points…oops, hold on let’s not get carried away. Still, a good performance by City and easily the most encouraging of the pre-season. Celtic fans enjoyed a good day out and have no reason to be discouraged by the result, their team looked very dangerous throughout. All three goals in the match had real quality. I think I’ve decided that Barry’s goal was in fact with the left foot (got it right the first time!)
Other big news of the day is Tevez’s debut. He looked good out there. Decision time for Mark Hughes on whether to go with him or Bellamy next week–Bellamy’s goal today was first class.
That’s all, we’ll post videos of the goals later on this thread.
Category: Team NewsHas City Lost Its Soul? (And Can a Club Have a Soul Anyway?)
By: Thad | 12 Comments
In the past, author Colin Shindler has been credited with capturing the spirit of what it has meant to support Manchester City over the decades, in books such as “Manchester United Ruined My Life” and “Fathers, Sons, and Football.” This week, however, Shindler is being credited with setting off a massive, er, sandstorm on the City blogosphere with his Daily Mail piece declaring that “the heart has been ripped from the club I loved for 50 years.” Read the rest of this entry »
Category: Team NewsHello Kolo, So Long Elano
By: Thad | 3 Comments
City have at last secured some fortifications along the back four, with the acquisition of Kolo Toure from Arsenal this week. Even if the Lescott bid doesn’t come off, there will be some serious competition for places now in the back and Toure’s experience makes him a very welcome addition.
Read the rest of this entry »
Category: Team NewsJohn Terry for Chelsea
By: Thad | 5 Comments
The Guardian is reporting in Thursday’s editions that John Terry is set to make a public announcement that he will stay with Chelsea, presumably on improved terms.
Read the rest of this entry »
Category: Team NewsKaizer Chiefs-City Live Blog!
By: Thad | 41 Comments
City’s second match in the Vodacom Challenge against Kaizer Chiefs is underway and we’ll be live blogging the rest of the action; it is streaming live at www.mcfc.co.uk.
Picking up action in the 12th minute with Gareth Barry’s free kick from the right which is headed just wide by McGivern, who is starting in central defense. McGivern earlier headed over from a corner. It’s been a very bright opening 12 minutes to the match with decent shots on both ends and City showing good attacking presence through Barry, Ireland, and Wright-Phillips.
13th minute. Still 0-0, for the record. City are starting Bridge, McGivern, Mee and Zabaleta across the back with Taylor in goal; DeJong, Barry, Etuhu, Ireland, and Wright-Phillips in midfield, and Caicedo up front.
15th minute. Kaizer have just won a corner down the left but it’s easily cleared. A follow-up shot after an aborted City break ends with a long shot by Chiefs that flies over the crossbar. 55% City possession so far.
18th minute. Ireland plays Caicedo down the left but he’s well-tackled just inside the area. City are in a familiar 4-5-1/4-3-3 with Ireland pulling the strings.
19th minute. Ireland fails to convert a one-on-one–well saved. Bridge made the chance with a nice dribble and ball over the top for Ireland who beat the offside trap. He seemed to dally on his finish. Barry’s corner is easily cleared.
21st minute. Ireland breaks free again but this time he’s a yard offside when Etuhu played the ball.
22nd minute. Bridge’s slightly clumsy challenge results in a free kick and a talking-to, 40 yards from goal. Kaizer move it down the left and win a corner off SWP.
23rd minute. No problems clearing the corner for City.
26th minute. Very sloppy give away by de Jong but Kaizer’s long shot goes wide. On the other end SWP is offside.
28th minute. City let off hook after a quick Kaizer break ends in a bad pass. City had nicely got the ball into the box to Barry who crossed into the keeper’s arms. After the Chiefs break, City came right back to Etuhu who aimlessly knocked a cross over the end line. Very open game but no goals yet…
30th minute. Barry again makes his way into the box with a nice dribble but his low shot isn’t powerful enough to beat the keeper. Nice to see Barry getting involved.
31st minute. Kaizer so nearly score! A cross from the left bounces off McGivern and just wide off Taylor’s right post. Half the crowd thought it was in, as they say….
35th minute. City are hogging the ball but are not producing clear openings at the moment. One feels it’s just a matter of time, however….
37th minute. A long Chiefs shot stuns Stuart Taylor, who can only parry it away–that shot had some good movement on it.
40th minute. SWP plays Zabaleta into the channel his floating cross is easily taken by the keeper.
41th minute. City have now been caught offsides 5 times in this half.
43rd minute. A bizarre moment as Ireland tries to quickly take a free kick from 25 yards but no City teammates are alive to his intentions and the ball goes straight to the keeper.
44th minute. Yellow card for dissent for Caicedo, who was furious the referee didn’t play advantage after SWP was fouled. Bridge fired wide from distance after the resulting free kick. City had a 3 on 2 break when the ref whistled.
45th minute (2nd minute of extra time). GOAL for Stephen Ireland!
Etuhu crossed from the right to Ireland for an easy left foot finish from 6 yards, right on the stroke of halftime. Kaizer had so nearly cut open City right down the middle only moments before, credit City for breaking out well. That’s halftime and City lead, 1-0.
46th. We’re underway in the second half–will report on changes momentarily.
47th minute. Petrov is in and makes his presence felt with a dangerous cross, palmed away by the keeper. It falls to SWP but all he can do is win a corner.
48th minute. McGivern (or was it Mee?) heads over from Barry’s corner. Benjani is on the pitch now for Caicedo. Ireland has also departed.
51st minute. Kaizer had a free kick 25 yards from goal but it trickles weakly past Taylor’s goal. But Kaizer are back at it again and Taylor has to dive smartly to his left to make an excellent save.
52nd minute. Yet another corner for Kaizer–City a bit pinned back just now.
56th minute. Kaizer are going for it with a very attacking mentality but City are coping. Zabaleta makes a nice interception but Benjani is offside on the ensuing through ball.
59th minute. For the record, Etuhu shifted from the left to right flank for this half with SWP playing more centrally in the “Ireland” role. Hasn’t really suited SWP so far.
62nd minute. A long way to go yet but City’s third choice defensive pairing of Mee and McGivern has looked quite steady so far.
63rd minute. On the other hand, City really miss Ireland this half–the Blues lack the same control over the game they had in the first period.
65th. Vidal has come on to play right back with Zabaleta pushing into midfield. Barry has gone off.
67th. There’s a decent City move–the ball spread around nicely around the attacking third before Petrov let fly from a couple of yards outside the box, whizzing the ball just wide of goal.
68th. Etuhu was played in for a brief moment but was closed down quickly at the top of the box before he could do anything with the ball.
72th minute. Garrido now in for Bridge.
74th minute. A break in the action due to a Kaizer injury–camera shows Richard Dunne looking on from the crowd.
75th minute. Finally some meaningful action–Petrov got free on the wing and ended up winning a corner, perhaps could have done even better.
80th minute. Neither side looking dangerous at the moment. Not a lot of urgency either. Etuhu is having a good game however.
81th minute. City off the hook big time! Motaung missed a sitter from about 7 yards after some great work set him up. He went for placement but pushed it wide of the right post. Weiss in for SWP.
84th. Now that was strange–Taylor almost whiffed on an awkward back pass, just getting a piece of it to keep it out of the goal; then Chiefs recovered the ball and fired a hard shot wide from 20 yards.
86th minute. City completely on the back foot at the moment, as another Kaizer shot flies wide. SWP is doing post-match stretches on the sideline.
89th minute. Oh no! Etuhu was in the clear, faked out the keeper, then got the finish horribly wrong. That would have wrapped it up and sealed Etuhu as man of the match.
90th minute. On the succeeding move Weiss got himself in the box but nothing came of it. Etuhu really won’t want to see that replay–he had the goal at his mercy, though the angle was a little tight.
90th (+). Into injury time–there will be 3 minutes. City is trying to make a late change to bring in Bojinov.
93rd minute. One minute to go. It was Benjani who came out for Bojinov.
93rd minute. Weiss wins a tackle in midfield and then a foul. One last long ball from Chiefs is dealt with by the backline, and that’s the final whistle!
City collect a quite decent 1-0 victory, riding their luck at times in the 2nd half. The defensive showing by the youthful pairing of Mee and McGivern was quite impressive, and City looked dangerous on the break.
Man of the match: Only on the pitch for 45 minutes, but Ireland was the game’s most influential player and grabbed the goal. The TV is giving it to Zabaleta however, who is graciously thanking the South African hosts.
Next up for City is a rematch against either Orlando Pirates or Kaizer Chiefs on Saturday.
Category: Team NewsShould He Stay or Should He Go?
By: Thad | 5 Comments
The logic of Manchester City’s long-running pursuit of Mister Chelsea England Captain Big Shot John Terry is finally beginning to come clear. It appears the strategy is to drag matters out so long that no one really cares any more what happens in the end. That’s the way to make a once-shocking move seem acceptable (if not inevitable).
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Category: Team News
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