Manchester City’s Samir Nasri hit the winner against Chelsea last night- What did we learn from the match?
Carlos Tevez is ready to have his say in the title race
Any ill-feeling towards Carlos Tevez form City fans is fast being forgotten after his pass for Samir Nasri’s winner. Chalk this one up as three points he has helped the club gain, how many more will there be? It is no secret City have been faltering, and Tevez can be the catalyst in the club’s revival. Manchester United may feel they have the edge right now, but they haven’t bargained for a returning Tevez, who showed last night just how ready and able he is to be a difference maker.
Fernando Torres is not ‘back’ and looks more frustrated than ever
Two goals against a Championship side is not a vindication of a player’s ability to reproduce the same at the top level. Ask Michael Owen after his brace against Leeds earlier this year. Torres looked like he had an extra spring in his step early on, but that enthusiasm quickly evaporated as the game went on. His body language as he was taken off showed complete frustration, and he was quite disrespectful to Roberto di Matteo. Can this end well? We doubt it.
Chelsea’s Napoli win should not deflect from their problems
Last week Chelsea were reflecting on a momentous victory, all suddenly seemed rosy again. Now after this defeat it is a case of being brought back down to earth. They are languishing behind Tottenham and Arsenal in the race for Champions league spots, an issue which should be the club’s priority. Do they have a chance of winning the Champions League? You have to say it’s near impossible to see when you consider the form of Barcelona, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. Getting past Benfica could be tricky enough, but the club shouldn’t get too caught up in it and ignore the league, otherwise it will be the Europa League beckoning them next season.
David Silva is off form
Well it had to happen some time. Silva has been magnificent this season, a player of the year contender no doubt. Yet right now he is off the boil. In fact City only seemed to come back into this one when Silva was taken off the pitch by his manager. City should consider resting him for this weekend’s trip to Stoke. They need him right for the rest of the run-in, and may be a few days off may do him good.
City are not cracking yet
All week City have been suffering the indignity of being compared to Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle United of 1996. To be fair when Gary Cahill scored for Chelsea, it seemed a decent comparison. However City showed they have a great resilience, and have so many weapons in their armoury they are never out of it. With 20 home league wins in a row now, Manchester United have it all do to when they visit the Etihad in April. If City do win the league, they will look back on last night as one of the key moments in the title race.
What did you learn from last night? Will City win the league?
image: © dullhunk
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