Showing posts with label Carlos Tevez. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Carlos Tevez. Show all posts
Manchester City went third in the table after beating Queens Park Rangers 3-1 at the Etihad Stadium in a match they made far harder than it needed to be.
The meeting between the two sides brought back memories of last season's final day 3-2 classic but City were hoping to avoid the need for such dramatics this time out.
Yaya Toure gave them an early lead and the champions proceeded to completely dominate the first half without being able to double their advantage.
Bobby Zamora then scored a scarcely deserved equaliser in the 59th minute for the visitors from West London but Edin Dzeko, making his first start since March, headed City back in front two minutes later.
City would have been expected to push on from there and kill off the game but instead they tired badly giving a previously laboured QPR side a chance of an unlikely point.
However, despite playing seven summer signings, QPR were similarly uninspired, and Carlos Tevez redirected a mis-hit Edin Dzeko shot into the net in stoppage time to wrap up the victory.
An indication of City's early domination was the fact that their opening goal came from what was already their seventh corner of the match in just the 16th minute.
Samir Nasri curled the corner to the back post where Tevez shot against Zamora – the ball then bounced out to Yaya Toure near the penalty spot and the Ivorian fired home the opener.
QPR were completely devoid of ambition in the first half and just sat back in numbers hoping that City wouldn't break them down.
Roberto Mancini's men had a number of chances but it was somehow only 1-0 at the break. The closest QPR actually came was a bizarre clearance from halfway back towards his own goal by Jack Rodwell that sailed just over.
The second-half followed a similar patter and Pablo Zabaleta was desperately unlucky not to score in the 52th minute when, after been slipped in by a cute David Silva pass, he curled a great effort off the underside of the crossbar.
Then QPR scored completely against the run of play in the 59th minute. Andy Johnson nicked David Silva in possession and ran into the box; he fired a shot on goal that took a deflection and Joe Hart did superbly well to save it, however, he could only put it into the path of Johnson's former Fulham team-mate Zamora who nodded home a header from two yards.
That seemed to wake up City though who had the lead again just two minutes later.
Tevez was again involved as he reacted quickly to a fizzed ball by Aleksandar Kolarov into the box to push the ball forward with his right foot before pulling back a cross with his left from the end-line that landed perfectly on Dzeko's head, allowing the big striker to nod home from close range.
However, after that City got sloppy again and seemed to tire badly. New signing Esteban Granero was having a decent game for QPR in midfield and the booked Kolarov was perhaps lucky to stay on the pitch after barging into Anton Ferdinand and then his replacement Nedum Onuoha.
QPR did create a couple of changes as City looked gassed but they were perhaps unlucky that their two best openings fell to centre back Ryan Nelsen who mis-hit one effort and couldn't get onto the end of another cross that Jolean Lescott had failed to deal with.
Instead it was City who would get the game's fourth goal, as Tevez scored his 50th Premier League goal when he redirected a poor effort from Dzeko past Rob Green.
It was fully deserved, as the Argentine had allowed Yaya Toure to feed the Bosnian by harassing the QPR defenders in possession.
It was again a stoppage time goal from an Argentine against QPR, but while it may not have had the drama of last season's meeting between the sides, and Sergio Aguero's heroics, three points are three points, and once again it was City who took the spoils.
Liverpool paid for two critical defensive errors as a fine team performance was ruined and three points turned into one in a 2-2 home draw against Manchester City in the Premier League.
Having lost 3-0 to West Brom in their opening fixture, this was undoubtedly the performance Brendan Rodgers required from his Liverpool side and their superior passing and quality was rewarded as they twice took the lead through a Martin Skrtel header and a wonderful free kick from Luis Suarez.
However, a combination of a flapping Pepe Reina and a muddled Martin Kelly allowed Yaya Toure to equalise initially on 63 minutes, before Skrtel was guilty of a truly dreadful mistake as his awful back-pass allowed Carlos Tevez to round Reina and score with 10 minutes remaining.
Dominating a match against the reigning champions was clear progress for a side that prior to today had picked up just 18 points in 20 Premier League games in 2012, but it could and should have been an even more auspicious occasion for Rodgers in what was his first home league game as Liverpool manager.
Having carefully restored the old This Is Anfield sign and reintroduced red nets to the famous stadium, Rodgers has been at pains to put across the message that he is giving this grand old club a new lick of paint. That extended to the playing staff too with the average age of Liverpool's team dropping to 24 years and 364 days - the youngest starting XI for the club since 2003.
That was in large part due to the fact that Liverpool gave a Premier League debut to 17-year-old Raheem Sterling and the forward, playing down the left, made an eye-catching contribution in the early stages. After 18 minutes, Sterling cut onto his right and delivered a wickedly dipping cross to find Fabio Borini charging towards the near post. However, having beaten Aleksandar Kolarov to the ball, the Italian striker turned his shot wide.
By this point Liverpool had already suffered the loss of Lucas Leiva - who spent so much of last season sidelined with a knee injury - to a muscular problem that forced his withdrawal after only five minutes, but the setback appeared to do little to disrupt their approach as they adopted a commendably high tempo and went in hunt of a goal from the off, pressing City hard.
Suarez was sparky enough, though the Uruguayan was a touch wasteful in the final third again, and alongside the immaculate Joe Allen, who failed to misplace a single pass in the entire first half, captain Steven Gerrard was influential too, threatening twice with early chances that he dragged wide of the post.
City by contrast seemed unbalanced with both Carlos Tevez and Mario Balotelli in attack and David Silva relegated to the bench, though they almost took the lead after 20 minutes when Tevez darted onto a through-ball from Samir Nasri, rounded Jose Reina and saw his shot from a tight angle bounce along the goal line and strike the far post.
But with the reigning champions only a intermittent threat, Liverpool secured the goal their efforts merited after 34 minutes. A dangerous cross from Gerrard forced a corner, and nearly an own goal, from Kompany, before the Liverpool captain delivered the set-piece from the right himself. Skrtel thundered into the box and leapt in front of Kolarov and Pablo Zabaleta to hammer his header past Joe Hart for a half-time lead.
With Allen producing a faultless display of passing, this was the kind of performance the appointment of Rodgers from Swansea had promised, even if this new style remains firmly in its infancy on Merseyside.
Liverpool should have extended their advantage after 50 minutes when Yaya Toure gave possession away with a sloppy cross-field pass. Borini took possession and slipped a pass inside to Suarez as his team-mate arrived on the edge of the box. Suarez also opted for finesse but failed to get the correct contact on the ball to beat Hart.
City looked strangely listless, a concern in the context of a rather unconvincing 3-2 win at home to Southampton in their opening game of the season, and it required a tactical switch from Mancini to re-establish themselves as a force in the game as he brought on Jack Rodwell for Samir Nasri and pushed Yaya Toure up the pitch. It is a ploy he has used regularly before, and brought immediate rewards.
On 63 minutes, Tevez muscled his way past Sterling on the City right and flung in a rather hopeful cross. However, Reina came and flapped at the ball in the air, meaning Martin Kelly was unprepared to deal with it when he came his way. The defender's attempted clearance was still rather slapstick though and the ball fell to Yaya Toure, who slotted it home from close range.
But it was an undeserved equaliser for a City side uncomfortable in a 3-5-2 formation and horribly sloppy in possession, and Liverpool deservedly stole the lead back inside three minutes. Rodwell fouled Gerrard 25 yards from goal and Suarez dispatched a perfectly judged free kick that curled around the outside of the wall and snuck inside the near post.
Liverpool enjoyed their renewed ascendancy and should have been afforded the chance to take a two-goal lead on 73 minutes when Kolarov brought down Glen Johnson with a clumsy challenge from behind, only to be mystifyingly let off the hook. Liverpool were bemused, and they were made to pay.
Having just cleared superbly from the centre of his own box, Skrtel ruined a fantastic performance with a horrendous lapse of judgement on 80 minutes. After checking back on the left wing, he tried to play a back pass to Reina but instead rolled the ball into the path of Tevez, who did very well to hold his composure, round Reina and tap the ball home.
Liverpool threw on Andy Carroll in an attempted to secure the win they deserved and the striker did come close when seeing a late header cleared off the line by Rodwell. Shelvey went close too with a lovely shot from range but Rodgers was to be denied a win that would have firmly shaken off the blues of an opening defeat at West Brom.
Manchester City began their Premier League title defence with an exciting 3-2 win over newly-promoted Southampton at the Etihad Stadium.
David Silva had his first-half penalty saved before Carlos Tevez finally breached the Saints' back line five minutes before the break.
Rickie Lambert equalised as the hour mark approached before another Saints substitute, Steven Davis, repeated the trick midway through the half after a counter-attack sparked by a poor pass from new City signing Jack Rodwell.
Southampton's hopes of beating the champions upon their return to the Premier League after seven years away lasted all of four minutes before Edin Dzeko grabbed an equaliser. Samir Nasri then netted with 10 minutes remaining after a mistake by Danny Fox to register a win by the same scoreline as his team's last home game – the dramatic late victory over QPR which saw them claim the title.
The victory was another thrilling one for City fans to enjoy, but the main concern for those at the club will now be the welfare of Sergio Aguero. The striker, whose late goal on the final day won City the title last season, was stretchered off with a knee injury after a quarter of an hour following a challenge from Nathaniel Clyne.
City manager Roberto Mancini started with £12 million summer signing Rodwell alongside Yaya Toure in midfield, while Tevez started up front alongside Aguero.
Southampton manager Nigel Adkins pulled a couple of surprises with his first teamsheet as a top-flight manager, preferring Jay Rodriguez up front to last season's top scorer Lambert and handing a first league appearance to 17-year-old midfielder Jack Ward-Prowse.
That Argentine double act was broken up early on, however, when Aguero's run down the left was halted by a well-timed recovering tackle from Clyne, making his Southampton debut following his move from Crystal Palace. Aguero appeared to hurt his knee as the fair challenge was made, and after a few minutes of treatment he was taken away on a stretcher.
City confirmed after the match that Aguero would undergo an MRI scan to assess the extent of the damage, and they would have the result in a couple of days.
Mario Balotelli had initially been the player to warm up when Aguero first went down, but Mancini eventually brought on Dzeko instead.
Moments later Tevez won a penalty when he coaxed Jos Hooiveld into tripping him with a nimble turn inside the box. Silva was the man to place the ball on the spot, but his poor attempt had neither the power nor the placement to trouble Kelvin Davis.
Southampton centre-backs Hooiveld and Jose Fonte led the visitors' defence well, and there was a big question of offside when they were eventually beaten on 40 minutes. Tevez looked to be marginally past the last defender as he began his chase for Nasri's clipped ball down the left, but there was no questioning the clinical near-post finish the striker dispatched.
As City began the second half just as dominantly, Adkins rolled the dice and brought on the striker whose goals had been such a major part of the club reaching the top flight via back-to-back promotions. Lambert took just three minutes to open his Premier League account when he instinctively pounced on a loose ball on the edge of a box and curled a fine finish out of Joe Hart's reach.
Adkins then followed that change with another by bringing on former Aston Villa and Fulham midfielder Steven Davis, a summer acquisition from Rangers who had more Premier League experience than anyone else at the club. The Northern Irishman took even less time to get on the scoreboard when he lashed home a low strike past the England keeper on 68 minutes.
Mancini responded by finally introducing Balotelli with 18 minutes left, and immediately following that change Dzeko levelled after Yaya Toure's shot from range following a corner fell kindly for him to finish from close range.
After a frenetic period of end-to-end action the match was settled by an unfortunate error from Fox, who inexplicably headed Gael Clichy's cross back across goal allowing Nasri to finish for the winner on 80 minutes.
Adkins brought on Billy Sharp but he could not make it a hat-trick of scoring substitutions, but even in defeat he and his side can take many positive points from their visit to the champions after seven years out of the top flight. The real hard work for them will start next Saturday when they host Wigan Athletic at St Mary's.
Manchester City have formally announced the signing of Sergio Aguero from Atletico Madrid on a five-year contract for a reported £40m.
The 23-year-old has been the most sought-after striker in world football since he said he wanted to leave Atletico in May and his decision to sign a five-year deal with City will raise already sky-high expectations that they can challenge Manchester United for the Premier League title.
Aguero, seen as the natural replacement for fellow Argentine Carlos Tevez who wants to leave the club, said he was ready to fight to help City achieve their ambitions.
"My style has always been to fight to the death for every ball, and give 100 percent every game," Aguero, who scored three goals in four games in Argentina's disappointing Copa America campaign, said in an interview on Manchester City's website.
"I'll be concentrated to the maximum in everything I do, movement, running off the ball, winning the ball back and scoring goals..."
"To be honest, I don't think I'll have too many problems settling in to the team," added Aguero, whose transfer fee was reported to be around 45 million euros (£40 million) which would eclipse the sum they paid for previous record-signing Robinho.
"I'll do my best to do what the manager asks and try to work the way he wants me to. Of course he will know how he wants to use me."
Aguero said he had signed for Champions League debutants City to challenge for major trophies, having watched on television as the club won its first silverware for more than 40 years by beating Stoke City in the FA Cup final.
"I saw the FA Cup victory last season," Aguero said. "I think we are a team that in the future will be fighting every year to win major trophies and let's hope its quite a few major trophies."
Aguero, who married one of Argentine great Diego Maradona's daughters, will wear the No.16 shirt at City and could get his first taste of action in this weekend's pre-season Dublin Super Cup tournament, the club said on its website.
"I've only heard good things about the squad and can't wait to get to know them," said Aguero, scorer of 74 goals in 175 appearances for Atletico during his five-year stay in the Spanish capital.
City, who are bank-rolled by Abu Dhabi billionaire Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, have already been spending heavily in the summer transfer window which closes at the end of August.
French left back Gael Clichy was signed from Arsenal while Mancini also pounced for highly-rated Serbian defender Stefan Savic from Partizan Belgrade.
Arsenal moved up to second place in the Premier League table with a 3-0 victory over 10-man Manchester City at Eastlands.
Dedryck Boyata was sent off after just five minutes, and soon after the Gunners were ahead through Samir Nasri's seventh goal of the season.
Joe Hart lifted City spirits when he saved a penalty from Cesc Fabregas, but Alex Song put the result beyond doubt midway through the second half before substitute Nicklas Bendtner announced his return from injury with a goal late on.
The Gunners moved above both Manchester clubs into second place on goal difference, with the trio all five points below leaders Chelsea.
City went into this clash sitting second in the table behind the Blues having already beaten the champions this season; the fixture was nicely poised for them to further boost their title credentials.
They almost got off to a great start when Carlos Tevez showed great determination to drive down the right and square a low ball for David Silva, who almost beat Lukasz Fabianski with a backheel flick.
But those hopes were dealt a severe blow when 19-year-old defender Boyata brought down Marouane Chamakh right on the edge of the box as the last man. Referee Mark Clattenburg had no choice but to show him a red card for the fastest dismissal in the Premier League in two and a half years.
Unperturbed, City's attacking triumvirate of Tevez, Silva and James Milner continued to ask questions of the Gunners, who picked up four bookings in the first half.
However, after Johan Djourou had headed an effort over the bar, Nasri put the visitors ahead on 20 minutes. The Frenchman played a neat one-two with Andrei Arshavin, completely lost Gareth Barry and fired his strike past Hart at the near post.
City continued to show more ambition with 10 men than they often do with 11, with Micah Richards curling a left-footed effort wide of the far upright.
But when Vincent Kompany brought down Fabregas inside the City area with five minutes of the half remaining, it looked all over for City. However Hart saved the Arsenal captain's spot-kick well to his left.
City boss Roberto Mancini made changes, although his hand was forced by two of his key players picking up knocks. Wayne Bridge replaced Yaya Toure at half-time, and not long into the second half former Arsenal striker Emmanuel Adebayor replaced Tevez.
City continued to fashion chances after the break, with Fabianski called into action to make another fine save from Silva before Adebayor headed over the bar.
But their resolve was finally broken on 66 minutes when Bridge diverted Fabregas's pass for Chamakh into the path of Song, and the Cameroon midfielder lashed a crisp finish past Hart.
The one positive for Mancini, aside from his side's spirit despite being a man down for so long, was the introduction of Mario Balotelli after the Italian striker had missed so much of the season thus far through injury.
Arsene Wenger had two players of his own back fit - and after he brought on Theo Walcott and Bendtner the latter scored his first goal of the season.
Nasri kept the ball in play on the halfway line before picking out the Dane, who went on to lift a clinical finish over the onrushing Hart.
Wenger will also be heartened to have witnessed another good performance from Fabianski, underlined by his tipping over a curling shot from Jerome Boateng in injury time - and ensuring Arsenal kept their first clean sheet away from home in 15 games in all competitions.
Coach
* Diego Maradona
Goalkeepers
* Mariano Gonzalo Andújar
* Diego Pozo
* Sergio Romero
Defenders
* Nicolás Burdisso
* Martín Demichelis
* Ariel Garcé
* Gabriel Heinze
* Nicolás Ottamendi
* Clemente Rodríguez
* Walter Samuel
Midfielders
* Mario Bolatti
* Ángel Di María
* Jonás Gutiérrez
* Javier Mascherano
* Javier Pastore
* Juan Sebastián Verón
Strikers
* Sergio Agüero
* Gonzalo Higuaín
* Lionel Messi
* Diego Milito
* Martín Palermo
* Maxi Rodríguez
* Carlos Tévez
