Given’s City slickers make their point

A remarkable week for Shay Given ended with a huge sigh of relief for the goalkeeper in Wigan yesterday.

Having helped Ireland seal a World Cup play-off place before winning his 100th international cap, Given was handed the captain’s armband by Manchester City manager Mark Hughes at the DW stadium.

But what should have been a proud moment for Given, skippering the Premier League’s biggest spenders in the absence of Kolo Toure, almost ended in acute embarrassment.

With Chelsea and Liverpool both slipping up the previous day, this was an ideal opportunity for City to send a clear message of intent to their rivals at the top of the table.

They went into the match knowing that if they won by two goals, they would end the day third in the table – above Tottenham on goal difference.

But Wigan have proved City’s bogey team in the past – winning five of the eight previous Premier League meetings between the two sides – and the men from Eastlands found themselves staring another defeat in the face when Charles N’Zogbia netted his first goal of the season on the stroke of half time.

It was the kind of grim scenario which would have made previous City outfits take fright, but Mark Hughes’ side are made of sterner stuff these days.

The Welshman has instilled some of the steely spirit which characterised his old Blackburn side and that, combined with their obvious, well-moneyed quality, ensured there was no slip-up. Martin Petrov equalised in the first minute of the second half and City even shrugged off the effect of Pablo Zabaleta being harshly sent off in the 65th minute.

“I’ve got to be reasonably happy given the circumstances,” said Mark Hughes, the Manchester City manager. “This is a match we would probably have lost last season. But we have a lot more characters.

“Wigan are a strong side with a lot of pace. They’ll certainly win more than they lose so I’m not too disappointed.”

In its own small way, this was a message of intent from City, who stubbornly refused to accept the fate that had befallen Chelsea at this arena earlier in the season.

That said, it was a close-run thing. Wigan forged ahead on the stroke of half-time, Hugo Rodallega charging down the left before firing a cross-shot that Given could only parry into the path of N’Zogbia.

It was only Wigan’s ninth league goal this term and it threatened to spoil Given’s day after he was charged with the responsibility of leading his team mates out. As well as Toure, City were also without in-form Craig Bellamy, absent with a groin injury, and they clearly missed the Welshman’s pace and energy as they struggled to put the Wigan defence under pressure.

Despite fielding £50million of striking talent in the shape of Carlos Tevez and Emmanuel Adebayor, the visitors failed to test goalkeeper Chris Kirkland until the final few minutes of the first half.

But the second half was a different story altogether. Within a minute of the re-start Hughes’s side were on level terms, Petrov firing into the bottom corner with his left foot following Tevez’s powerful surge down the right flank.

Suddenly Wigan, comfortable for the previous 46 minutes, were on the back foot. It required a sublime tackle by Titus Bramble to deny Adebayor in the 53rd minute before Kirkland dislocated the little finger in his left hand.

Kirkland opted to battle on yet instead of putting the keeper under pressure, City shot themselves in the foot when Zabaleta was dismissed for a second bookable offence. Having been harshly booked in the first half, the south American was guilty of a clumsy challenge on Jason Scotland in the 65th minute.

But Wigan were unable to make their extra man advantage count as City were allowed to escape relatively unscathed.

Roberto Martinez, the Wigan manager, expressed his disappointment.

“Was it a fair result? Not really because I thought we were the better side over the 90 minutes,” said Martinez. “I felt we stopped a very talented side from playing.

“The pleasing thing is we kept creating and trying to win the game. But we will learn and get better. We created enough chances to win.

“It’s another step forward towards fulfilling our potential.”

City will doubtless feel much the same this morning.

REFEREE: Alan Wiley (Staffordshire) 5: There was not much wrong with his fitness but the official, lambasted by Alex Ferguson two weeks ago, put himself under pressure by needlessly booking Zabaleta in the first half.

MATCH RATING: *** A thoroughly entertaining Sunday afternoon in the north west. Wigan gave as good as they got and deserved their point.