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Manchester City win to edge closer to title

Manchester City move within touching distance of their 


first title for 44 years, as Yaya Toure scores twice to beat 


Newcastle.

The Ivory Coast midfielder beat Newcastle goalkeeper Tim Krul with a low curling shot with 20 minutes left.

He then added a second from close range with time running out.

City now know that victory over QPR in their final match of the season will secure the Premier League title.

This was a dominant display by City, inspired by Vincent Kompany's defensive generalship, David Silva's prodigious work in midfield, stellar finishing by Toure and a workrate and ambition that glowed throughout the team.

The omens must have given Roberto Mancini's men cause for hope and optimism before kick-off.

It was at this ground on 11 May 1968 that City won to clinch their last league title. Some 44 years on, history repeated itself as City moved to within three points of the prize that has eluded them for so long.

While it was understandable that much of the attention focused on City, Newcastle were chasing a prize of their own.

Arsenal's 3-3 draw with Norwich City had opened the door to Champions League qualification.

It was fitting, then, that Sir Bobby Robson - the last manager to lead Newcastle into Europe's top club competition - had been immortalised before kick-off as the club unveiled a statue to honour his memory.

But it was City who dominated the opening 30 minutes. Sharper to the ball, swifter to use it, City forced Krul, the Newcastle goalkeeper, into action on a number of occasions.

The Dutchman was forced to turn away low shots from both David Silva and Sergio Aguero, while Carlos Tevez went close with a curling free-kick.

It took Newcastle half an hour to produce their first effort on goal, but more soon followed.

Demba Ba fizzed a 25-yard shot over Joe Hart's crossbar. Moments later the Newcastle striker saw his goalbound shot blocked by Kompany after a clever run by Jonas Gutierrez. The ball ran to Ben Arfa but his low shot was well saved by Hart, low to his left.

It was City, however, who had the best chance of the half shortly before the interval. The mercurial Silva broke clear down the left and cut the ball back to Gareth Barry near the penalty spot.

The England midfielder's first shot was blocked by Fabricio Coloccini, while his second found a path to goal only for Davide Santon to clear off the line.

City maintained their momentum after the restart with Tevez fired high and wide, before testing Krul from distance.

As the half wore on Mancini's side were struggling to convert their lion's share of possession into clear-cut chances.

Then came what proved to be an inspired substitution. Nigel De Jong replaced Nasri on the hour mark to allow Toure to push into a more advanced position behind Aguero and Tevez.

The Ivorian made an instant impact in his new role. Collecting a neat lay-off from Aguero, he curled a wonderful low shot beyond Krul's outstretched left hand to spark scenes of jubilation in the away end and on the City bench. It was the first goal Newcastle had conceded in 497 minutes of football at the Sports Direct Arena.

City should have made sure of the result four minutes later when Silva lofted a delightful through-ball into the path of Aguero only for the Argentine to nudge his shot inches wide of the right-hand post when clean through on goal.

Newcastle almost made City pay for their profligacy, when Ba and Papiss Cisse connected only for the latter to head high and wide from close range.

City were in charge, however. Aguero put Toure through on goal only for the City midfielder to slip at the crucial moment. Edin Dzeko turned a shot narrowly over the bar from the resulting corner.

It mattered not, though, when Toure made sure of the result and perhaps the title a minute from time, as he finished a typically swift City counter-attack with a close-range finish.

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini: "It is not finished. It is important that we get three points next week, we need a big effort - there is one game more. I think for us it should be a normal week. We don't change nothing, QPR will be tough, they are fighting for relegation. Nothing changes. It is ours to lose. It doesn't depend on other teams anymore.

"Toure's first goal was special, like the one he scored in the FA Cup final for us last year. This one may be more important if we can finish the season off.

"Newcastle are a good team, they have had a fantastic season. But we deserved to win today, we scored two goals and created three of four other chances to score more. Everyone played really well, the whole team played really well."

Newcastle manager Alan Pardew: "We knew the first goal was going to change everything. We didn't get it but we had a few chances to. Once that goal went in, we had to push on and that opened us up a bit.

"It was a great performance by my team. You have to say Manchester City were brilliant today. When you can bring on one world star for another... that freshness just made the difference today. But it is never over in the race for the Premier League title, no matter who your opponents are.

"We have great potential at this football club. We are back where we should be, we have tradition and history that few clubs can match. If we can win at Everton next week it will put massive pressure on Arsenal and Spurs. They have go to win now."

Newcastle United v Manchester City

Roberto Mancini is expecting to select from the same squad of players when he names his Manchester City team to face Newcastle on Sunday.


 Mancini may be tempted to stick with the starting line-up from Monday's crucial win over Manchester United, although Micah Richards and James Milner might both hope to be involved.


 City do have a good recent record on their visits to Tyneside, winning three times in an unbeaten four-match streak, and will be aiming for another success to take them a massive stride close to their first league title since 1968.


 Ahead of the game Mancini has expressed his pride at City's performances this season whether they end the campaign as Premier League champions or not.


 City's crucial victory over United at the Etihad Stadium on Monday leaves them just two wins away from their first championship since 1968. No matter how the next 180 minutes pan out, Mancini believes his players have good cause to be satisfied with their efforts, especially considering they were eight points adrift of the Reds just four games ago.


 "I am happy that we are here and we have this chance after being eight points behind United," he said.


 "This is very important because now we have a big chance. "In the end, nothing has changed. "We still have two games to go and in football anything can happen. You can lose or win. 


But the guys have worked really well and I am proud of this." Presumably Mancini, with the ultimate prize so close, will not be expecting his players' focus to be drifting to what happens when the season is over.


 He did though seem a bit confused in his answer when quizzed about the subject. 


"Now, yes (the title is more important than the beach). In two weeks, no," he said. "We have an important game. 


The players know that they have everything in their hands." Their quest this weekend is winning on Tyneside. 


It is a task they have completed successfully on three of their last four visits, drawing the other one. None of those results was achieved against a Newcastle side competing to qualify for the Champions League though. 


And certainly, none of them were achieved against a team containing a striker as lethal as Papiss Cisse presently is.


 The Senegal forward took his tally to 13 goals in 12 games for the Magpies with his sensational double at Chelsea on Wednesday, which kept Alan Pardew's men level on points with Tottenham in the battle for fourth spot. "Any player can improve a lot in every year," said Mancini.


 "Maybe Cisse has found a good squad, that plays football very well. It is another situation for him and another type of football. Maybe that is better. "It is always difficult for someone who arrived in January.


 "But he has scored 13 goals. However, even at Freiburg he played very well, even if he didn't score quite so many." 


Although Mancini's team have clawed back the gap to United, he accepts the hard work is not over. Indeed, he is convinced Sunday's game will be harder than this week's encounter with United, when they prevented their opponents from having a single shot on target. 


"Against United we played at home and we played very well," said Mancini. "Against Newcastle it will be harder." Newcastle midfielder Cheick Tiote will be fit despite suffering a nasty head injury in midweek.


 The Ivory Coast international needed seven stitches to repair a gash above his eye after an aerial collision with John Obi Mikel in Wednesday night's 2-0 win at Chelsea, but manager Alan Pardew has no doubts he will be available for the City game. Full-back Danny Simpson (ankle) remains a doubt, but only central defender Steven Taylor (Achilles) is still on the long-term injury list. 

Man City to Offer Two Players Plus £40m Cash for Tottenham Winger Gareth Bale

Etihad Stadium side ready to make mammoth offer for White Hart Lane wide-man. Too good to turn down?

Bale out: City set to offer Spurs £40m players-plus-cash deal

Massive transfer would see the Welsh winger triple his salary and potentially see Adebayor and another star swap Eastlands for Tottenham

Super-rich City will try to make the move happen by offering the Welsh wonder THREE times his wages, which would put him on over £100,000-a-week.

Striker Emmanuel Adebayor – on loan from City to Spurs for the season – would make his switch permanent if the clubs can agree the more complicated part of the talks.

City may also offer another player in the deal if Spurs boss Harry Redknapp and his chairman Daniel Levy do want to play ball, with Nigel De Jong and Adam Johnson both potentially on the list of candidates.

SOURCE: Daily Mirror

Tottenham may struggle to keep their big stars if they fail to secure Champions League football for next term, something that looked on the cards prior to the turn of the year, and an offer of his magnitude for Gareth Bale may therefore be considered by the North London club.

Gareth Bale has been in excellent form over the past two seasons and this has led to genuine interest from a number of Europe’s elite, most notably from Barcelona. Last summer Tottenham chairman prevented Luka Modric from pursuing a move to Chelsea, a move the Croatian clearly wished to make, could the White Hart Lane side prevent such a deal occurring this time around?

The inclusion of Emmanuel Adebayor in any deal to buy Gareth Bale may tempt Redknapp as the Togo international has been the club’s most effective striking weapon, notching up 16 goals and 11 assists this term. Adam Johnson would of course be handy addition too.

Gareth Bale may well like the idea of tripling his current salary and also the chance to push for major honours so this deal, if it is to be believed, may well be one that could lead to the sale of the former Southampton man.