Home comforts give City that winning feeling
On February 27 last year, Fulham claimed a 1-1 draw at City’s home ground but since then, 12 months have passed and 18 Premier League teams have come and gone from the Etihad Stadium without a solitary point.
A beleaguered Blackburn Rovers were the latest team to arrive and eventually get rolled over thanks to goals from Mario Balotelli, Sergio Aguero and Edin Dzeko.
The title chasers levelled Newcastle’s record of 13 straight home league wins in one Premier League season set in the 1995-1996 campaign, while they now trail United’s record Premier League run of 19 consecutive wins — from October 30, 2010 to October 1, 2011 — on their own patch by just one.
Teams now come with fear to the Etihad, just like they have done when visiting Old Trafford for so many years.
Some sides have come to give Roberto Mancini’s men a challenge with five of the 13 defeated teams at the Etihad this season holding out until half-time. Blackburn do not fall into that bracket, they came with a plan to defend, keep it tight and then maybe steal a goal on the counter-attack. They only managed to do one of those tasks, and they did not do it very well.
City took the lead after 30 minutes with a sweeping move started by Yaya Toure. He laid the ball off to the ever-energetic David Silva and the Spaniard then found Aleksandar Kolarov out wide.
The Serbian full-back marauded down the left-hand side before crossing for Balotelli who, in his usual laid-back style, turned the ball past Rovers goalkeeper Paul Robinson.
There was no ‘Why Always Me?’ T-shirt, rather a message unveiled to his latest amour, Raffaella Fico.
Blackburn had a penalty claim soon after City’s opener when Morten Gamst Pedersen went down under a challenge from Nigel de Jong, but Mike Jones rightly waved play on as the Dutchman got a clear touch on the ball.
That was the closest Steve Kean’s struggling side came to edging their way into a game which they seemed to just pass them by. City’s second came after 52 minutes and it came almost gift wrapped with a bow on top.
Robinson, the reason Blackburn were still somehow in contention after a string of first-half saves, flapped at a Silva corner and the ball fell right at the feet of the grateful Aguero, who fired home his 21st of the season.
Dzeko replaced Balotelli in the 79th minute and got involved in the goalscoring with a powerful header as Kolarov, who was a constant danger going forward, provided the pinpoint cross.
“I think we controlled the match right the way through and the goals came at the right time,” said Platt.
Last week Mancini said, in tongue and cheek, that if they win their next 13 games, as it was at the time, they will win the league. Now they just need to win 12, but while it may be too far-fetched to believe they won’t drop another point, Platt insists they have that belief.
“There is a confidence in the side that means we believe we can go and win football matches. Every time we go into a game we believe we have got the resources to be able to win it.
“Statistics will tell you that it is very difficult to do it 12 or 13 times on the bounce. But there is enough belief in us to realise that we can win enough to make it very difficult for the others to catch us.”
For Blackburn, their only shot came in second-half stoppage time when Yakubu gave Joe Hart his only work of the afternoon, and Rovers slip back into the relegation zone.
However they can take comfort in the fact that the next team to visit here is their fellow strugglers, Bolton.
Kean purred: “When they [City] do rotate, I don’t think the quality diminishes any, it stays the same. That’s what an expensive squad does. It is going to be difficult for anyone [to take any points at the Etihad Stadium].”
A home fortress, a wealth of talent at their disposal, goals galore and an ability to beak defensive teams down.
It certainly reads like a list of title credentials.
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