Hart – While not having to make any saves, Joe needed to be on his toes at set pieces. His judgement was good with a couple of punches, then letting his defence take care of the rest. 6
Zabaleta – A welcome run out for the Argentine. Solid defensively and he took up good positions in attack to provide width. As usual Pablo finished the game in a different position to which he started – this time left-back. 7.
Continue Reading →City head to Austria for an early 6pm (BST) kick-off against Salzburg in our opening Europa League fixture. With ourselves and Juventus the favourites to go through, Roberto Mancini could be looking for a victory.
Not that Salzburg should be underestimated, having already come through two Champions League qualifiers before dropping out 3-4 to Hapoel Tel Aviv. Last season they won all six Europa League group games defeating the likes of Lazio and Villarreal along the way.
Continue Reading →Possibly the most encouraging aspect of the final few minutes against Blackburn was the influence of David Silva. The Spaniard looked sharper and more dangerous than in any of his games thus far, prompting Roberto Mancini to suggest it’s time to give him more minutes.
There was always the danger that Silva would take time to acclimatise. Having to stay for the full length of the World Cup with Spain resulted in an almost non-existant pre-season with his new club.
Continue Reading →Following a promising start, the last two fixtures have resulted in a hugely disappointing one point from a hoped for six. The City manager provided the following reflection on how a Tevez miss, a Micah push and a Joe Hart wander have cost us dearly.
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