MAN CITY 3 – 0 Sunderland – MY THOUGHTS
7 Oct
This was the performance we had been waiting for. The victory was, of course, imperative but more than that, what was most pleasing about yesterday was the display, full of fluid movement and control of the midfield, one that became the norm last season but had hitherto eluded us this time around. However, with a 90 minute showing that oozed authority and class, albeit against a woefully limited Sunderland side, optimism has been restored and this must now be used as a catalyst to kick on.
Aleks Kolarov’s early goal, a trademark, powerfully struck free-kick, settled any nerves and allowed a sense of freedom and comfort to guide our play. The results this season haven’t been at all concerning, but the level of performances have, not least in midweek against Borussia Dortmund, so this was a delightful return to the City that so entertained us last year.
With James Milner and Gareth Barry utterly dominant in the centre of midfield and David Silva somewhere near his sublime best, we were able to control the tempo of the game, our vibrancy really coming to the fore in the final half hour following Sergio Aguero’s introduction. It was a performance that was much-needed, truth be told, after the lethargy that was manifest in the Champions League and we now head in to the international break with some momentum and self-belief restored.
Kolarov had one of his best games for the club, his goal and a terrific assist for Aguero being the highlights of an energetic display, but the standout player, in my eyes, in amongst a thoroughly impressive team performance was James Milner. He hasn’t featured as regularly as he would have liked so far but recalled to the side and, crucially, operating in his favoured central midfield role, he sent a message to Roberto Mancini.
His tactical awareness and versatility is much heralded, but apart from those qualities and his tireless running, he was able to provide touches of quality in the midfield, something which recent acquisition Javi Garcia has failed to do. Milner’s tackling was spot on, his passing was incisive and with tempo and he was still bombing forward in the latter stages of that match, thoroughly deserving of his goal. It was a performance which will make him tough to drop and his dynamism and tenacity in the centre was just what was needed.
With Gareth Barry also returning to provide cover in front of the defence and continue his regular mopping up role in midfield, we looked far less susceptible to the counter-attack and the opposition’s pressing game. Admittedly, there was very little in Sunderland’s showing that was reminiscent of Borussia Dortmund, but by shifting the ball quickly and involving Silva at every opportunity, we looked far more meaningful in possession, far more likely to create better goalscoring opportunities and cause havoc.
Sergio Aguero made a huge difference after coming off the bench, his livewire presence unsettling the Blacks Cats’ backline and his link-up play with Tévez, who sparked into life with the introduction of his fellow Argentine, produced memories of the final few matches of last season. There was an increased purpose and drive about our play, one that now must be maintained in future games, not just seen sporadically.
Opposition View: Sunderland had arrived at the Etihad unbeaten, albeit having only won one of their five matches, but I expected more from them. After last season, when they pressed high up and attacked us with pace and fluid movement, this was a remarkably unenthusiastic display. There didn’t seem to be any bite in their play, a couple of hopeful punts up to Steven Fletcher being their best option and with Adam Johnson (unsurprisingly) making no impression, they seemed limited.
As for City, this result and, most importantly, performance will hopefully set us on our way once again. It has been a solid, if not consistently enthralling, start to the campaign, but we’ve now got the foundation upon which we can build. The international disruption comes at a frustrating time but we’ll be back after that to travel to the Hawthorns.
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I have to say, I was so surprised by how poor Sunderland were, wouldn’t have expected a performance like that from an O’neill side.
Forgetting the opposition though, we were outstanding, particularly second half. Which raises the point, in the second half, none of our new boys were playing, it was the established order from last season. I think Mancini would do well to look at that. Also, Barry yet again proved how crucial he is to our play, getting the ball quickly out of the back four and linking with the forward players. For me Garcia doesn’t have that incisive forward pass and drive that Barry brings.
Milner, Barry, Kolarov and Richards exceptional, hope we can use this as a springboard to crack on
It was really good to be back to 4-2-3-1. This should be our default formation as it seems to be working really fine with our team.If it ain’t breaking then do not fix it. 3-5-2 and 4-4-2 should be our back-up plan when our default fails.
The pairing of Milner and Barry in mid-field combined with Milner’s high work-rate created more freedom for Yaya to move forward with no hole left behind. There are no words to describe the Milner’s effect on the game. He was the link that hold everything together. I do hope Mancini starts him as CM.
Richards looked great as central defender, I wonder if Mancini should try his paring with Kompany.
For critical games, Mancini should use Tevez [much like Rooney in current United team] and Milner as mid-fielders with Augero as a single striker. The high work-rate, and class of these two goes along away in controlling the mid-field.
thats a good point. Tevez and Aguero work really hard and press so much it makes us so much better
From a Sunderland fan’s point of view there’s nothing I can dispute in your report. Whilst we should be a pretty certain bet for mid table obscurity we are limited in the squad we have and yesterday showed how far we will have to go if we are to break into the upper reaches of the table.
While Milner had a very good game and while i appreciate it was in his favoured role where he rarely gets a chance, I dont think we can all of a sudden consider that he is the answer for the holding midfield role. He could just as easily be poor in that position the next time he plays, in reality I feel its his first really good game for us in quite some time and think we should calm it a little with the massive praise for him all of a sudden.
his work-rate is not going to change. I think he is fully deserving of the praise, and fully deserves to start if he keeps it up
The massive praise is based on the massive performance he had on Saturday. Though no one expects him to be the second coming of Messiah, some of us would like to see the glass half-full and hope he can keep up the good work.
I agree completely with this. Aleks Kolarov had a great game, but the heart of why we looked so good again is James Milner. Its amazing how much better we can look when we have someone like that pressing so hard and just running his arse off. I really hope we see a lot more Milner. Barry was also very good.
only one complaint is Balotelli. I’m getting tired of him. He doesn’t work hard at all, and definitely is not worth the trouble to me if he doesn’t improve tremendously. He’s capable of brilliance, but what striker isn’t?
How long have you got?
Good performance. Only disappointment was Yaya Toure (for a change). His passing was loose and he got caught in possession far too often. He looked tired to me. The old guard definitely showed that there was no need to buy what we bought over the summer. Still can’t see why we let De Jong go.
Let me explain then.
Nigel was excellent when we played 3xDMF and his destructive break up play and critical interventions made him a deserved fans hero. When we moved to a more attacking 4231 barry with his greater vision and much superior distribution was preferred in the deeper role and Yaya had made the ‘Vieira’ role his own. DJ then had less opportunities. This coincided with his contract negotiations and he declined to accept the terms offered preferring to serve out his contract and leave next summer on a free. City preferred to let him go last summer if he could find a suitable home outside of the PL and look to bring in midfield players with more versatile skillsets, more in line with Mancini’s current and future requirements.
Whether or not Rodwell and Garcia grow into the players that Mancini wants only time will tell, and they need time to settle and become established and rushing to judgement doesn’t help anyone.