MAN CITY 3 – 0 Swansea – MY THOUGHTS

Despite not being quite as emphatic, in either result or performance, as recent matches at the Etihad Stadium, three more goals secured three more points and City continue to glide towards the top of the table. There wasn’t the dominance or consistent level of scintillating football that we have come to enjoy over the course of the past month or so at home, but this was nonetheless an impressive victory against a Swansea side who moved the ball with precision and at pace, but lacked a clinical touch in front of goal.

That was the difference. For much of the first half, after City had taken the lead through Alvaro Negredo’s sublime free-kick, the visitors were the better side. They played at speed, broke through our midfield far too easily and were intricate and pleasing on the eye. However, missing the considerable goal threat of Michu and Wilfried Bony, they lacked penetration and Costel Pantilimon was only forced into a couple of long-range stops before Jonathan De Guzman wasted their best chance of the half, firing over from inside the area.

And that seemed to be the catalyst for the Blues to produce a much more incisive and meaningful second half display. The performance before the break was nothing to worry about but there was no great quality on show, yet after half-time, lead by the irresistible Samir Nasri, we surged to another level.

The Frenchman was at the hub of everything we did in an attacking sense, as he has been throughout this season, and his resurgence has been one of the highlights of the campaign so far. For two years, he was on the fringes, coasting around without any genuine threat. Now, he’s a menace to the opposition with his drive and purpose. In the absence of David Silva, we looked towards Nasri to provide the ingenuity and create the breakthrough. He did just that and more. Two glorious taken strikes capped off a sublime showing and he fully merited the man of the match award. In fact, he’s hot on the tails of Sergio Aguero and Alvaro Negredo as the star of the season so far.

Further back, in the face of Swansea’s vibrant style and constant interchange of movement, the pairing of Martin Demichelis and Joleon Lescott proved the value of experience and the importance of being able to read the game. Neither is blessed with pace, but both have a defender’s instinct to anticipate danger. Their positioning was excellent, as was their use of the ball, and as Vincent Kompany nears his return, Manuel Pellegrini is faced with a selection dilemma as to who he selects to partner the Belgian. Both are viable, and more than capable, contenders.

Overall, this was a hard-fought but solid win. We can’t obliterate every side that visits the Etihad, and Swansea were a tougher opponent than many we’ve faced this season, but we showed plenty of character and enough glimpses of attacking quality to sweep to another victory. A couple of tricky away fixtures are next up, with trips to West Brom and Southampton sure to test our momentum and confidence on the road. Should we come through those with a further six points, minds will start turning to the title.

Follow @viewfromablue