Tevez tricks as City vaults to 4th spot
Source: Agencies |
January 13, 2010, Wednesday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
MANCHESTER City manager Roberto Mancini savored his team's one-sided 4-1 Premier League victory over Blackburn Rovers on Monday - then said he was angry because they had conceded a goal.
It was City's fourth straight win since Mancini took over from Mark Hughes three weeks ago and followed a 2-0 win over Stoke City and 3-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the league and a 1-0 win at Middlesbrough in the FA Cup.
After praising hat-trick hero Carlos Tevez, scorer Micah Richards and the rest of his team, Mancini said: "It was a good night for us, but the team must concentrate for 90 minutes and I am angry because we conceded a goal, it was a gift.
"It's important that we concentrate all the time.
"I was angry because it was a gift, but for me we played very well, we must continue to play well and not concede any goals."
The victory lifted City into fourth place and a Champions League spot. But Mancini said the league table was unimportant now.
"Now we don't watch the table, we'll watch the table in two months, now it's not important," he said.
Tevez, who joined City from rival Manchester United at the start of the season and will face them when City meets United in the League Cup semifinal later this month, had a memorable match.
He scored his first Premier League hat-trick and took his tally for the season to 15 goals - with 10 coming in his last seven league matches.
"He was fantastic," said Mancini, who also raved about Richards' stunning goal which came after he ran 70 meters from the edge of his own penalty area before laying the ball off to Benjani Mwaruwari who shot against a post.
However Richards kept running and was first to the rebound, cracking the ball past goalkeeper Paul Robinson. "It's one of the best I scored, I just kept going and got lucky this time," Richards said.
Relegation zone
Chelsea leads the standings with 45 points from 20 matches, followed by Manchester United (44 from 21), Arsenal (42 from 20) and City (38 from 20), which moved above Tottenham Hotspur, now fifth with 37.
Blackburn, without a league win for nine matches, remained 13th, and is just three points above the relegation zone, having played three more matches than Bolton which is 18th.
City was without striker Emmanuel Adebayor who was with his tragedy-hit Togo team in Africa but he was very much in everyone's thoughts during a minute's silence before kickoff.
The Togo flag was displayed in the stadium as fans and players paid their respects to Togo following Friday's gun attack on its bus at the African Nations Cup in Angola which left two people dead, leading to Togo's withdrawal from the tournament.
City also delayed giving new signing Patrick Vieira (calf injury) his debut although he was given a rousing welcome by the home fans when he was presented to them before kickoff.
It was City's fourth straight win since Mancini took over from Mark Hughes three weeks ago and followed a 2-0 win over Stoke City and 3-0 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the league and a 1-0 win at Middlesbrough in the FA Cup.
After praising hat-trick hero Carlos Tevez, scorer Micah Richards and the rest of his team, Mancini said: "It was a good night for us, but the team must concentrate for 90 minutes and I am angry because we conceded a goal, it was a gift.
"It's important that we concentrate all the time.
"I was angry because it was a gift, but for me we played very well, we must continue to play well and not concede any goals."
The victory lifted City into fourth place and a Champions League spot. But Mancini said the league table was unimportant now.
"Now we don't watch the table, we'll watch the table in two months, now it's not important," he said.
Tevez, who joined City from rival Manchester United at the start of the season and will face them when City meets United in the League Cup semifinal later this month, had a memorable match.
He scored his first Premier League hat-trick and took his tally for the season to 15 goals - with 10 coming in his last seven league matches.
"He was fantastic," said Mancini, who also raved about Richards' stunning goal which came after he ran 70 meters from the edge of his own penalty area before laying the ball off to Benjani Mwaruwari who shot against a post.
However Richards kept running and was first to the rebound, cracking the ball past goalkeeper Paul Robinson. "It's one of the best I scored, I just kept going and got lucky this time," Richards said.
Relegation zone
Chelsea leads the standings with 45 points from 20 matches, followed by Manchester United (44 from 21), Arsenal (42 from 20) and City (38 from 20), which moved above Tottenham Hotspur, now fifth with 37.
Blackburn, without a league win for nine matches, remained 13th, and is just three points above the relegation zone, having played three more matches than Bolton which is 18th.
City was without striker Emmanuel Adebayor who was with his tragedy-hit Togo team in Africa but he was very much in everyone's thoughts during a minute's silence before kickoff.
The Togo flag was displayed in the stadium as fans and players paid their respects to Togo following Friday's gun attack on its bus at the African Nations Cup in Angola which left two people dead, leading to Togo's withdrawal from the tournament.
City also delayed giving new signing Patrick Vieira (calf injury) his debut although he was given a rousing welcome by the home fans when he was presented to them before kickoff.
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