Middlesbrough 0 - 1 Man City

Posted Sunday, January 03, 2010 by BBC.com

Middlesbrough 0 - 1 Man City
Just over 12,000 supporters were in attendance to for the visit of Man City

Manchester City edged past a spirited Middlesbrough side to maintain Roberto Mancini's unblemished record and book a place in the FA Cup fourth round.

Benjani broke the deadlock on the stroke of half-time when he swept home an incisive pass from Martin Petrov.

Boro impressed with their workrate and commitment, but struggled to create.

Their attacking play improved after the break, however, with Rhys Williams heading over their best chance as City likewise wasted several opportunities.

The win maintains City's flawless start under Mancini, who has now guided his side to three wins in three games, with six goals scored and none conceded.

But while Mancini might have racked up 10 Coppa Italia wins as a player and manager, his team selection will have left some onlookers questioning his commitment to the English Cup.

Presumably mindful of Wednesday's first-leg League Cup semi-final against Manchester United, the Italian adopted a conservative approach.

There were five changes to the City line-up, which had Benjani ploughing a lone furrow up front and included a first-team debut for young defender Dedryck Boyata.

Even with City in fine form since he replaced Mark Hughes, it was a risky call by Mancini and on another day it might have backfired.

Boro, labouring 26 places below City on the league ladder, had won only twice in 10 games since Gordon Strachan's late-October arrival on Teesside.

Yet the early exchanges, during which Boro midfielder Adam Johnson was comfortably the best player on the pitch, threatened to make a nonsense of the form book.

Showing levels of commitment and belief that belied their recent Championship struggles, Boro were relentless in their determination to deny City time and space, closing down quickly and launching a series of raids down the flanks.

Strachan's tactics meant that City, unable to build attacking moves through midfield, were reduced to punting long balls forward to Benjani, who cut an increasingly isolated figure.

But an injury to Johnson just after the half hour upset Boro's momentum, and City were quick to exploit their hosts' vulnerability.

The lurking danger was clear when a neat exchange between Petrov and Yakubu on the edge of the area culminated with the Bulgaria international slicing a shot wide.

But Petrov soon made amends. From a starting position deep in central midfield, he carried the ball forward before splitting the Boro defence with an inventive ball to Benjani, who fired an angled shot across keeper Danny Coyne.

Mancini, scenting victory, moved swiftly to consolidate City's advantage by introducing Carlos Tevez at half-time.

Nevertheless, the first clear-cut chance after the break fell to Boro's Williams, who should have done better than head tamely over when Tony McMahon's far-post cross from the left found him in space.

A momentary loss of concentration by Chris Riggott subsequently allowed Tevez through, but having rounded Coyne the Argentina international failed to find the net from a tight angle.

Mancini responded by introducing a third attacker in the shape of Craig Bellamy, but Boro - for all their inability to cause problems at the other end - remained resolute.

David Wheater forced Vincent Kompany to head off the line late on, while Bellamy forced a fine injury-time save from Coyne, but City ultimately had to settle for a narrow win ahead of United's midweek visit to Eastlands.

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Middlesbrough manager Gordon Strachan on strengthening his squad in January:

"It needs to be done because it is not often you get a situation where at a good club, you have to ask somebody [Marcus Bent] to come back for two weeks to you for a favour.

"That doesn't go on at too many clubs, and that's where we are at the moment.

"We have got a 19-year-old [Jonathan Franks] who just made his debut last week.

"We need to do something for these young ones, because we don't want to push them too early."

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini:

"It's important. Middlesbrough played very, very well. They were under pressure in the first 20 minutes, but we scored a goal and it went well.

"I am very, very happy. When you start a new job, it is important that you start well. We have started well, but we must work hard in the next week.

"It is important to improve."