Manchester C 0 Sunderland 1:FORGET WALKING on the river Wear, Martin O'Neill could probably have tap-danced across it last night. Sunderland's new manager has long been known as an exceptional motivator but defeating Manchester City with an alarmingly makeshift team must rank among his finest achievements.
Secured courtesy of a controversy-tinged, if cleverly taken, 93rd-minute goal from the South Korean substitute Ji Dong-won and featuring two midfielders filling in at full-back, O’Neill’s triumph represented a potentially significant blow to Manchester City’s title hopes.
While there are infinitely worse places to be at new year than sitting level on points with Manchester United at the top of the Premier League, the look of disgust writ large on Roberto Mancini’s face emphasised that City’s manager regarded this as an opportunity missed.
By resting too many key players before tomorrow’s meeting with Liverpool the Italian, who stalked furiously up the tunnel after Ji’s goal, forgetting to shake O’Neill’s hand, had perhaps underestimated his Sunderland counterpart.
Although City dominated possession and, during a frantic second half, spurned several decent chances, their hosts, pressing diligently throughout, occasionally unnerved them on the counterattack.
City received their first fright in the third minute. O’Neill jokes that Nicklas Bendtner’s self-belief is such that the Dane regards his attacking ability as right up there with the very best and only a little bit behind Lionel Messi’s.
This pride swiftly came before a fall. Sent accelerating clear of Joleon Lescott thanks to Stephane Sessegnon’s beautifully weighted through pass, a suddenly unsure Bendtner took a touch or two too many, permitting Joe Hart to step off his line, narrow the angle and block the route to goal.
Where Bendtner elected to try and round City’s goalkeeper, Messi might well have threaded an exquisite early shot into the bottom corner. A similar lack of Messi-esque subtlety was notable in central midfield where a most combative sub-plot pitched Lee Cattermole and City’s Nigel de Jong in direct, wince-inducing, opposition. It took a mere seven minutes for De Jong to be booked for fouling Sunderland’s increasingly impressive captain.
It was a little disappointing when Mancini replaced De Jong with Sergio Aguero at the interval.
Bar the odd moment of sorcery from the excellent Sessegnon, things were becoming somewhat one-sided in City’s favour. Considering that injuries had forced O’Neill to field Craig Gardner and Jack Colback, both midfielders, at full-back and that Wes Brown limped off to be replaced by Matt Kilgallon – a defender still thawing out following months in the deep freeze during Steve Bruce’s reign – this was hardly startling. The real surprise was that the scoreline remained, stubbornly, goalless.
Mancini’s suddenly easy-to-second-guess side were missing Mario Balotelli’s unpredictable brilliance. Late in the first period Sunderland might have taken an unlikely lead after a rare break that concluded with Gardner’s shot from outside the area swerving narrowly off target.
As Mancini spent much of the interval alone in quiet contemplation in an otherwise empty dug-out, his homily at half-time must have been short and sweet.
City re-emerged with Aguero floating just behind Edin Dzeko, and Yaya Toure dropping back into De Jong’s Cattermole-confronting role. The stalemate endured for a further nine minutes before a suddenly impatient Mancini pressed a third tactical button. He has recently demanded that Nasri assume greater on-field responsibility and, clearly underwhelmed by the former Arsenal midfielder’s contribution, the City manager sent on David Silva in his place.
Aguero soon spurned a fine opening but instead scuffed his close-range shot after being put through by Dzeko. It was a bad miss but perhaps justice had been done as Sessegnon was fouled in the build-up.
The Benin forward is O’Neill’s brightest creative spark and, having pulled off the not inconsiderable feat of wrong-footing Vincent Kompany, Sessegnon very nearly scored himself – his low, angled shot flashing fractionally wide.
Deep in stoppage time Ji exchanged passes with Sessegnon before the striker – arguably a fraction offside – displayed fine balance and control to carry the ball beyond Hart before directing it into the empty net. In an instant Alex Ferguson’s horizon brightened appreciably.
