City wins to stay on United's tail
Source: Agencies |
December 16, 2012, Sunday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A CLINICAL early strike by Argentine Sergio Aguero helped champion Manchester City beat Newcastle United 3-1 yesterday and cut Manchester United's English Premier League lead to three points.
United, which can restore its advantage to six points when it hosts struggling Sunderland in a later kickoff, has 39 points to City's 36.
Third-placed Chelsea, on 29, will have a game in hand due to the European champion playing the Club World Cup final in Japan today. Liverpool will go in search of a third consecutive victory at home to Aston Villa, having closed to within four points of the Champions League places following last weekend's 3-2 win at West Ham United.
City, determined to come back strongly after the bitter disappointment of losing 2-3 to United in stoppage time last weekend, was a goal up after 10 minutes at St James' Park.
Ivorian midfielder Yaya Toure split the defense with a superb pass to find Samir Nasri, adjudged to be just onside, who rolled the ball back for striker Aguero to stroke home.
Nasri, mockingly described by City manager Roberto Mancini as only half a man in the defensive wall that failed to keep out Robin van Persie's winner last Sunday, did his best to make amends with a spirited but short-lived performance.
The French playmaker smacked the ball against the post in the 20th, with Tim Krul off his line and well beaten, but then limped off after 37 minutes following a heavy challenge by Davide Santon.
Javi Garcia headed City's second two minutes later, the Spaniard climbing high to meet a corner that Santon might have cleared off the line had the Italian defender not been completely wrong-footed.
City, with no room for Mario Balotelli even on the bench after Mancini said the mercurial Italian needed to train more, looked in control until Demba Ba got Newcastle back into the match with a powerful header six minutes after the break.
The goal, after Newcastle defender Fabricio Coloccini hooked the ball high into the box when a corner was cleared, was the Senegal striker's 11th in the league this season.
It spurred a Newcastle revival that could easily have seen the scores levelled. However, a 78th-minute strike from Toure calmed City's nerves with the Ivorian poking the ball through the home defense off an angled cross from Pablo Zabaleta.
Defeat for Newcastle left it in danger of tipping into the relegation places, with the club two points above the drop zone with 17 points from 17 matches, and increased the pressure on manager Alan Pardew.
"The performance against (Manchester) United was fantastic," said City manager Roberto Mancini. "We were disappointed by the result but today was difficult because after the defeat against United, we needed to restart quickly.
"We had a very difficult game against Newcastle but I think the guys today were really, really good. It could have been six or seven -- I don't know how many chances we missed."
United, which can restore its advantage to six points when it hosts struggling Sunderland in a later kickoff, has 39 points to City's 36.
Third-placed Chelsea, on 29, will have a game in hand due to the European champion playing the Club World Cup final in Japan today. Liverpool will go in search of a third consecutive victory at home to Aston Villa, having closed to within four points of the Champions League places following last weekend's 3-2 win at West Ham United.
City, determined to come back strongly after the bitter disappointment of losing 2-3 to United in stoppage time last weekend, was a goal up after 10 minutes at St James' Park.
Ivorian midfielder Yaya Toure split the defense with a superb pass to find Samir Nasri, adjudged to be just onside, who rolled the ball back for striker Aguero to stroke home.
Nasri, mockingly described by City manager Roberto Mancini as only half a man in the defensive wall that failed to keep out Robin van Persie's winner last Sunday, did his best to make amends with a spirited but short-lived performance.
The French playmaker smacked the ball against the post in the 20th, with Tim Krul off his line and well beaten, but then limped off after 37 minutes following a heavy challenge by Davide Santon.
Javi Garcia headed City's second two minutes later, the Spaniard climbing high to meet a corner that Santon might have cleared off the line had the Italian defender not been completely wrong-footed.
City, with no room for Mario Balotelli even on the bench after Mancini said the mercurial Italian needed to train more, looked in control until Demba Ba got Newcastle back into the match with a powerful header six minutes after the break.
The goal, after Newcastle defender Fabricio Coloccini hooked the ball high into the box when a corner was cleared, was the Senegal striker's 11th in the league this season.
It spurred a Newcastle revival that could easily have seen the scores levelled. However, a 78th-minute strike from Toure calmed City's nerves with the Ivorian poking the ball through the home defense off an angled cross from Pablo Zabaleta.
Defeat for Newcastle left it in danger of tipping into the relegation places, with the club two points above the drop zone with 17 points from 17 matches, and increased the pressure on manager Alan Pardew.
"The performance against (Manchester) United was fantastic," said City manager Roberto Mancini. "We were disappointed by the result but today was difficult because after the defeat against United, we needed to restart quickly.
"We had a very difficult game against Newcastle but I think the guys today were really, really good. It could have been six or seven -- I don't know how many chances we missed."
- About Us
- |
- Terms of Use
- |
-
RSS - |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Contact Us
- |
- Shanghai Call Center: 962288
- |
- Tip-off hotline: 52920043
- 沪ICP证：沪ICP备05050403号-1
- |
- 互联网新闻信息服务许可证：31120180004
- |
- 网络视听许可证：0909346
- |
- 广播电视节目制作许可证：沪字第354号
- |
- 增值电信业务经营许可证：沪B2-20120012
Copyright © 1999- Shanghai Daily. All rights reserved.Preferably viewed with Internet Explorer 8 or newer browsers.
