Slick City closing the quality gap

PERHAPS it is a result of living next door to football’s equivalent of the neighbours from hell that Manchester City and their supporters are so prone to hyperbole.

For a club that is only able to measure its success, or lack of it, by the black-and-white photographs of trophy-winning teams from a bygone era, they certainly like to talk up their perception that City continues to be one of the Premier League’s biggest and most important clubs.

Anywhere other than Manchester, those claims might hold value, but City would need to double their average attendance, import some silverware for the trophy cabinet and drop a few superstars into their team if they were to ever attempt to eclipse neighbours United.

Yet quietly, and in that familiar understated manner which many misconstrue as a lack of passion, Sven-Goran Eriksson has made progress in closing the gap between Manchester’s blues and reds. Understatement is what it is all about for Eriksson. There is no Keeganesque exaggeration from the former England manager, just a ‘no big deal’ shrug of the shoulders whenever his City team achieves another milestone.

Under previous regimes, City supporters would have been encouraged to slip on their dancing shoes and head for the nearest rooftop having claimed a 10th successive home victory, nine of which have been recorded in the Premier League this season. But after taking their points tally at home this campaign to 27 from 27 with victory over Bolton, Eriksson barely batted an eyelid.

“Have any of my teams won nine straight home games in the league before? Yes, probably.” Eriksson shrugged. “I will have done that with Benfica and with Gothenburg, so it’s not new. Maybe it is easier to achieve in Portugal, though.”

Victory over Gary Megson’s Bolton lifted City into fourth place ahead of yesterday’s so-called ‘Grand-Slam Sunday’ involving Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal. With money to spend in January and a move for Shakhtar Donetsk’s Mexican forward Nery Castillo close to completion, City could yet prove to be the team that finally ousts one of the established big four from the top four.

Before that, City face Tottenham in the Carling Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday aiming to reach a major semi-final for the first time since 1981. If Eriksson can inspire City to the last four, he will have a job on his hands to prevent the club booking an open-top bus.

He said: “I know how important it is to everybody here that we reach the semi-final this week. It is a big game for us, but when people ask me what the team can achieve this year, I tell them that we must look at where we are at the end of January. That is when it will matter, not before.”

Eriksson’s team continues to claim the victories that keep them in the race for Champions League football, however. Even without the injured Brazilian playmaker, Elano, City were too strong for a resurgent Bolton and they also displayed their character by fighting back from 2-1 down at the interval to secure all three points.

Having taken a seventh-minute lead through Rolando Bianchi’s scuffed opener from Darius Vassell’s cross, City allowed Bolton to gain a foothold in the game with two goals in the space of nine minutes from El-Hadji Diouf and Kevin Nolan.

Eriksson suggested that his players looked liked a “team of losers” at the interval, but his apparently rousing teamtalk transformed the home side, who levelled three minutes into the second half when Lubomir Michalik deflected Dietmar Hamann’s shot past the helpless Jussi Jaaskelainen.

City’s 19-year-old midfielder Michael Johnson had already imposed his class on the game by dominating the centre of the pitch and he continued to emphasise his huge potential by driving Eriksson’s men forward as they chased the winner. It was the Bulgarian winger Martin Petrov that unlocked the door, though, when his cross to Vassell was squeezed into the net for by the former England player. It was Vassell’s first goal of the season and one which will not harm his attempts to persuade Eriksson that he is worthy of a future at the club.

By the time Kelvin Etuhu made it 4-2 deep into stoppage time, Bolton had already given up the ghost and manager Megson admitted that his team still has work to do to escape the relegation zone.

He said: “We need to make some improvements away from home because we have conceded four goals at Liverpool and now four goals here. It’s not good enough just to perform at home, but not do it when we are away.

“We are either going to have to get people from outside the club or those already with us are going to have to step up to the plate and do their job.”

MANCHESTER CITY (4-4-2): Isaksson 5, Corluka 4, Richards 5, Dunne 8, Ball 6, Fernandes 4 (Etuhu 46, 6), Johnson 9, Hamann 4, Petrov 8 (Garrido 83, 6), Bianchi 7 (Mpenza 87, 6), Vassell 7.

Subs not used: Hart, Geovanni.

BOLTON (4-1-4-1): Jaaskelainen 6, Hunt 4 (McCann 85, 6), Meite 4, Michalik 6, Gardner 8, Campo 6 (Stelios 87, 6), Davies 7, Guthrie 8, Nolan 7, Diouf 7, Anelka 6.

Subs not used: Al Habsi, Samuel, Speed

REFEREE: Peter Walton (Northamptonshire) 7: One of the Premier League’s more unrecognisable officials, but that goes in his favour. Kept a low profile in this game and allowed the players to get on with it.

MATCH RATING: *** It was one of those games when the defences were definitely not on top, but the attacking football made it a spectacle.

Sven’s City revolution

Five ways the Swede has transformed City from wasters to winners.

Money Thai owner Thaksin Shinawatra’s millions have undoubtedly had an impact, with Eriksson able to sign genuine quality in Elano and Martin Petrov.

Youth On the flip side, Eriksson has shown faith in youth, promoting Michael Johnson and Micah Richards to the first team. Neither has disappointed.

Star quality After the rough ‘n ready days of Stuart Pearce, Eriksson’s show-biz persona has made City sexy again. There is a buzz around the club which was never there under the former England international.

Tactics Eriksson has not made major changes, but he has given City licence to attack in greater numbers. The dour defensive displays under Pearce are, by and large, a distant memory.

Attitude Eriksson’s ice-cool on the sideline saw him pilloried while in charge of England, but City’s players have found it a welcome change from Pearce’s touchline histrionics. It shows he trusts them.