30/10/06: City 1 Middlesbrough 0Updated: October 3rd, 2007
After nine defeats and five draws against them, we finally get one over on the Boro.
I’ve always had a dim view of Middlesbrough, probably unfairly.
In 1997 I followed Stockport’s League Cup run, a quite shameless display of trophy-hunting on my part. Going up for the second leg of the semi at the Riverside, the coach was stopped by police just outside the town. They were responding to reports that Boro fans had been throwing missiles from motorway bridges at any coach with the word “Stockport” on it.
Not exactly a good first impression, and the police confiscating cans of lager from a mini-bus full of County fans they’d pulled over (and refusing to give a reason why) didn’t help matters.
But my main memory of the game is of the County fans singing their hearts out, and Boro fans sitting in utter silence. Until the final minute that is, at which point they started chanting: “You’re going to win fuck all” at County’s support. Not very clever, I thought.
Anyway, after losing both cup finals and getting relegated that season I suppose karma came back to bite them in the ass.
But back to the game. Were we good or were they awful? Probably both, though the spirit we displayed made my recent remarks that the team appeared to be losing faith in Pearce seem ill-judged.
The lack of goals from open play still has to be a concern, though, and I hope the reports linking us with a £2m bid for Spurs’ Anthony Gardner are untrue as that would seem to signal Distin’s departure.
If one thing is clear from the last two games, it is that Distin is a talent we cannot afford to lose.
~ Photos from the game can be found at Rtfract, the BBC and Getty Images.
Match stats
Now this has to be stat of the day. After 56mins Boro had fouled every City player, including Nicky Weaver, the first time I can remember that happening.
The stats are compiled from the live commentary and differ slightly from Sky’s stats, which can be found here.
Season-on-season table
After losing 1-0 at home to Boro last season, yesterday’s win moves City up three places in the season-on-season table, which compares results to the corresponding fixtures from last year.
But our next two games - Charlton away and Newcastle at home - are likely to see us lose ground, as last season we won the games 5-2 and 3-0.
The latest Premiership table can be found here.
(Results against last season’s relegated clubs - Sunderland, West Brom and Birmingham - are compared to Sheff Utd, Watford and Reading respectively.)
Match reports
City 1 Middlesbrough 0 (MEN)
Unable to win away, the Blues are unbeatable at home and are still to concede a goal. How close they came to losing the latter record though in the frantic, frenetic final stages when they conspired to almost throw away a game they had dominated throughout, Boro substitute Massimo Maccarone twice firing against the post with Nicky Weaver beaten.
Manchester City get the job Dunne (Sky Sports)
Richard Dunne’s first-half header gave City a vital win after a lean spell of results, as a toothless-looking Boro saw their winning run end at two games.
Pearce stops backing horses as Dunne provides a winner (The Times)
Dunne had claimed beforehand that “personal pride” was at stake and the desire to atone for past mistakes was tangible. City were character personified, although their cause was abetted by a miserable Middlesbrough side.
Dunne’s header gives Pearce respite on nervy night for City (Independent)
If Stuart Pearce had been obliged to be wary of a call from his chairman after City’s disappointing opening to the season - and John Wardle, incidentally, insists that his manager’s job security has never been in doubt - then he will have been able to sleep a little more easily last night after watching his side pick up a fretful, if just about deserved, three points.
Dunne shows City ruthless edge (Telegraph)
Halloween is a night of spells and curses but Stuart Pearce can spend the evening knowing one hoodoo has been smashed. For reasons not entirely clear, Manchester City had beaten Middlesbrough once in 21 years and not at all in the top flight since 1981.
Dunne has City heading in the right direction (Guardian)
If there was a team that looked short of confidence and bereft of ideas it was that managed by Gareth Southgate. City thoroughly deserved to win.
Dunne’s header eases pressure on Pearce (Daily Mail)
If his Manchester City team can bottle a little of the confidence they showed in beating Middlesbrough last night then Pearce may not need a change in football’s rules to safeguard his future.
Manchester City 1 Middlesborough 0 (ComeOnBoro)
A greater hunger and a greater passion, that’s what City had this evening. They deserved everything they got, the Boro deserved nothing.
Player ratings
This week I’ve embraced the unloved squad rotation system, calling up Mancityfans’ King Kev, blue man dan and BlueChowder, and Citymancs’ Brendan.
Sky Sports’ player descriptions get the second yellow card after describing Richards’ performance for this game as “present”. Sky described him as “all over the place” for the Sheff Utd game, and I’m still not sure if that was a compliment or an insult.
Also worth checking out is the “Nerdic Indicator” at Wookie’s Lair.
The ratings come from (in order): King Kev, blue man dan, Brendan, rtfract, BlueChowder, Grob, MEN, Sky and Sky Your Rating.
Weaver: 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 7.0 (av: 6.1)
Rarely tested, and did nothing wrong. (MEN)
Didn’t have much to do really and I’m sure he had the two efforts that hit the post well covered!
Not much to do really, did enough to put Maccarone off twice. (blue man dan)
Barely had to get his kit dirty. (Brendan)
Had little to do but looked dodgy at times to me. Looked like he wanted to get into the game in the second half for some reason. (Grob)
Gave me a major scare when he almost stumbled backwards into goal when trying to take Downing’s cross. Handled the ball well but still doesn’t look safe enough for me. (BlueChowder)
Richards: 7, 7, 7, 6.5, 7, 8, 6, 6, 7.8 (av: 6.9)
Eager to get forward, but was occasionally dragged out of position (MEN)
A good steady performance from the youngster, had ‘England Inernational’ Downing in his pocket most of the game. (King Kev)
Played solidly, looks like he has made the right back spot his. (blue man dan)
Solid, seemed to be limping a little towards the end. (Brendan)
Kept Downing not just quiet but silent. Fell asleep once but Dunne covered him. Loads of energy. (Grob)
Worked well with Sinclair on the right, both players supporting each other whether it was going forward or closing down the opposing team. (BlueChowder)
Dunne: 9, 8, 8, 8, 8, 7, 8, 8, 9.0 (av: 8.1)
The captain called for character, and provided it in spades. (MEN)
MOTM - Brilliant performance from the captain, his partnership with Distin gets better and better, well taken goal too. (King Kev)
Played well, made some good tackles and scored a good goal. (blue man dan)
MOTM, good defensive work and notched his annual goal. (Brendan)
Did well but made a few mistakes that Distin covered his arse for. Both of Macarone’s efforts came from his area. (Grob)
Exorcised the ghosts of the Wigan game with a great goal. Showed the characteristics of an exceptional captain. (BlueChowder)
Distin: 8, 8, 7, 7.5, 8, 9, 7, 7, 7.7 (av: 7.6)
Calm and composed against club he might have joined. (MEN)
God we missed him last week, world class centre back if ever there was one! (King Kev)
Shows he and dunne cant be with out each other. (blue man dan)
A welcome return. (Brendan)
MOM. Didn’t put a foot wrong. If we lose him in January, we will be in a relegation fight. Easily the best player at the club. (Grob)
The difference he makes to our defence was obvious. Give him whatever he wants as long as he signs the contract! (BlueChowder)
Thatcher: 7, 7, 5, 6, 8, 6, 7, 7, 7.4 (av: 6.7)
Hardly put a foot wrong on long-awaited return (MEN)
Well impressed with him on his come back, tired towards the end but Jordan has got his work cut out in getting back in the team! (King Kev)
Quite impressed, one of the best games he has had for us esp after so long out. (blue man dan)
Ok first half under little pressure but a few hairy moments when Boro came into the game in the last quarter. (Brendan)
Decent return, safer than Jordan. Got a foot in when needed but tired badly towards the end, which was expected. Boro didnt have a right winger until Morrison came on and he immediately skinned Thatch. (Grob)
Extra credit for being able to come out and play well knowing that everybody else was waiting to get on his back once more. Wasn’t afraid to put in the hard tackle despite the ban and made a few good ones too. (BlueChowder)
Sinclair: 7, 7, 6, 6.5, 6, 6, 7, 7, 7.7 (av: 6.7)
Took responsibility and wasn’t afraid to track back (MEN)
Hooray, we have the Trevor Sinclair that played last season back again!! (King Kev)
His best game of the season, made a few chances out of completely nothing! (blue man dan)
Worked hard but little impact in the final third. (Brendan)
Hopeless as an attacking threat but gives us good shape and defends well. Works hard. Didn’t have a clue about playing center mid. (Grob)
See Richards. Kinda disappeared like he always does after the first half though. (BlueChowder)
Barton: 7, 8, 7, 6.5, 6, 7, 6, 9, 8.3 (av:7.2)
Distribution was loose at times, and free-kicks didn’t come off (MEN)
Worked hard and covered a lot of ground. Really needs to allow others to take free kicks within shooting distance, I’m getting bored of seeing him hit it straight at the wall. (King Kev)
Another solid performance, now he has his corners sorted he needs to work on them free kicks. (blue man dan)
Decent shift in the middle and better delivery from corners but oh those free kicks!! (Brendan)
Ran his bollocks off, barely gave the ball away, drove forward from midfield. Unlucky to be booked. Played well. Dead balls were pretty cack apart from the vital one. (Grob)
Good to see that his set pieces are improving with each game. Still has to work on his anger management though, was worried for him when he started throwing a tantrum when he was unfairly booked. (BlueChowder)
Reyna (Trabelsi 80): 7, 5, 6, 6.5, 6, 7, 6, 7, 7.3 (av: 6.4)
Comfortable against ineffective Boro midfield, but tired late on (MEN)
Great performance from Captain America, Hamann and Dabo are going to have to improve to get Reyna out of the team! (King Kev)
Did he turn up? Never really in the game and kept giving the ball away. (blue man dan)
See Sinclair. (Brendan)
Controlled the game well, used the ball intelligently, got a foot in, gave us shape and always wanted possession. Did the simple things well but nothing out of the ordinary. Tonight, thats exactly what we needed. Tired badly at the end. Fitness is a worry, as usual. (Grob)
Much better than Hamann. Worked to his limit (which wasn’t very high), and made decent contributions to the attack. (BlueChowder)
Beasley (Vassell 71): 7, 7, 5, 6, 6, 6, 5, 7, 7.6 (av: 6.3)
Didn’t get in enough dangerous crosses (MEN)
Surprised me, I thought he was rubbish, looks like he may be a good player! Great to see a City player taking people on again! (King Kev)
Showing excellent potential, if he stay injury free he will do great things for us. (blue man dan)
A few decent runs but failed to put in a telling cross. (Brendan)
Wins plenty of free kicks but should be wearing a tutu because he cant tackle to save his life. Looks a threat and gave us balance. There’s more to come from him but he’ll be useless away from home. (Grob)
Promising first start, but needs to gain confidence and react quicker when the ball is passed to him. Rest of the team should also try to give him the ball more often. (BlueChowder)
Dickov (Corradi 85): 7, 7.5, 7, 7, 7, 6, 7, 7, 7.8 (av: 7.0)
Always worth watching for his sheer nuisance value (MEN)
What a pain he must be to oposition defences! Some say he isn’t dangerous enough but had a good chance when 1-on-1 with the ‘keeper in the 1st half and created plenty of space for others. (King Kev)
Played well and gave us the grit we needed, EXACTLY his type of game. (blue man dan)
Usual terrier-like performance without ever really looking like scoring. Silly booking for dissent. (Brendan)
Ran hits nuts off for the cause but has about as much quality as a drawing pin and never even looked like scoring a goal. Never let Huth settle. (Grob)
Stuck to doing what he does best. Harassed the defence and annoyed the keeper. Entertaining guy to have on the team. Keeps energy levels high but that’s pretty much all he can do. (BlueChowder)
Samaras: 6, 8, 6, 6.5, 6, 6, 5, 8, 8.0 (av: 6.6)
Struggled to assert himself against Woodgate and Huth (MEN)
Not the best game I have seen from Big Sam, got back and defended well but chose the wrong option far too often in and around Boro’s penalty area. (King Kev)
My personal motm, played well, beat some players for a change and showed what he can be capable of as a striker when he is actualy played as one. (blue man dan)
Feeding off scraps but was always “showing” for the ball. (Brendan)
Made plenty of bad decisions tonight but worked hard and kept plugging away. Defended well from the front too. He’s on a different planet to the rest of the team somethimes though. Still our best bet for a goal. (Grob)
For somebody his height he’s pretty good at taking on defenders and also showed some neat dribbling. Finishing was below par though. A couple of his shots were pitifully weak. (BlueChowder)
Subs:
Vassell (Beasley 71): 6, - , 6, 6, 6, 6, 6, 7, 7.3 (av: 6.3)
Few touches as he tried to make an impression in attack (MEN)
Great to see him back terrorising defences, I’d forgotten how fast he is! (King Kev)
Two good breaks at pace but a poor finish on each occasion. (Brendan)
Pace is everything in the premiership and Vass proved it tonight. Hasnt got a clue how to play left wing or shoot by the looks of things. He can’t see past his nose. Play him upfront where he’s a real dangerman. Looked up for it tonight though. (Grob)
He can run along the left wing but that spot isn’t for him because he can’t shoot with his left foot. Will do fine once he’s played in the right position. (BlueChowder)
Trabelsi (Reyna 80): 5, - , - , 6, -, 6 , - , 5, 6.7 (av: 5.7)
Little time to make an impression (MEN)
Didn’t really have time to make an impact but looks classy (King Kev)
Barely touched the ball, but helped us keep good shape. I’m starting to think he isn’t a right winger though. (Citymancs)
Corradi (Dickov 85): 4, -, - , 5, - , 6, - , 5, 6.3 (av: 5.3)
No time to earn a mark (MEN)
Oh dear. (King Kev)
Ran around a bit and didnt mess up. (Grob)
Subs not used:
Hart, Hamann.