Porto 1 – 2 MAN CITY – MY THOUGHTS
17 Feb
A superb European away victory that has put the Blues in a marvelous position to progress. Full of desire, passion and quality, this was an impressive win against the current holders of the Europa League and should we now avoid defeat in Manchester in just under a week’s time, a place in the last sixteen will be ours.
Despite falling behind to a first-half Porto opener, we showed character to fight back and always looked likely to leave the Estadio do Dragao with at least a share of the spoils. Sergio Aguero’s late winner meant we returned home with far more than just the one point and those two away goals, the first of which came from an own goal, have made us strong favourites to advance.
It was a pleasing team performance, one that started a touch slowly but improved immeasurably after the break once we increased the tempo of our play. One player who stood out was the returning Yaya Touré, who, deployed in his more advanced role from last season, was full of purpose and drove us onwards from midfield. His powerful surges from midfield scared defences and he showed great vision in looking for Balotelli for the first goal. Even towards the end, when he might have been tempted to sit deeper and protect the lead, he drove forwards and selflessly set up Aguero. His presence, as much as anything else, disrupts the opposition and if he can continue this form for the next few matches, we will be perfectly set up for the title run-in.
On the other side of the scale, I was disappointed by the performance of Micah Richards, who, despite all his attacking verve, remains a liability in defence. Throughout the game, he was tormented by Porto’s pace and movement out wide, constantly being drawn out of position and although he ought to have received more help from the likes of Silva and Nasri, this display showed why Fabio Capello never trusted him for England. Indeed, Roberto Mancini only selected Richards for one Champions League game, favouring the greater solidity of Pablo Zabaleta and this is an area that Micah really needs to work on.
I can’t single out individuals without mentioning a certain Mr Balotelli. His return following a four-match suspension was expected and he looked sharp, eager to prove a point and displayed greater self-control that we have become accustomed to seeing. We received six yellow cards on the night thanks to a woefully inept referee, but Balotelli wasn’t one of those! His movement and pace was promising, always looking to link up quickly with those around him and his presence was vital for our first goal. If Mario can remain focused, driven and, most importantly, well behaved until the end of the season, he could provide that edge to our displays and will be a key figure.
The final word goes to the fans who were splendid throughout the day. The atmosphere from start to finish was fantastic, the songs witty and the general feeling was top notch. Whether it was sitting by the harbour with a drink, exploring Porto or cheering the team onto victory, it was a great European visit and judging by our form yesterday, we should have plenty more in the future.
Yaya’s back. We can’t fail.
Balotelli caught offside FAR TOO MANY TIMES = Lazy
Good result away to a strong European team with a fantastic home record, anyone else notice the similarity with the goal conceeded last night and Bayern and Napoli ie a cross from the left hand side….
I wish if y’d just STOP criticizing Micah….sigh*
Think your being harsh on Richards, he is hardly a liability.
I do agree he is hardly a liability but if it happens he may have a bad day, I do not see what is the problem of saying he was not at his best defensively despite his few goal attempts. And he was indeed out of position on a few occasions.
If you examine Balotelli’s offisdes you will see that most of the time he was on. This is a ref and linesman that gave Micah offside when he was at least ten yards onside. Balo’s efforts went largely unheralded. He did put in a lot of running and took up positions ready to score.
It used to be Yaya, now it’s Micah!!!!!!
Great trip, fine wines and times had in Portugal. I’m glad you spotted that Micah is a pure pea brain, it was an abiding memory alongside the great play of Yaya & Lescott and the taste of 20 year old tawny.