Manchester City recovered well from last week’s stumble against Liverpool to get their title campaign back on track, overcoming a Southampton side without Graziano Pellè.
There were patches of shaky play from both sides early on in the game with Raheem Sterling pouncing on one such instance from Maya Yoshida to steal possession and then dribble forward, crossing the ball to Kevin De Bruyne for the opener. Fabian Delph, making his starting debut for City, grabbed a second from a deflected shot from range before the half.
The defensive frailties that so troubled the Manchester side came to the fore again with Shane Long able to drift in all too comfortably to nod home at the back post early in the second period. Fortunately for the home fans, Aleksandar Kolarov was able to steady the ship 20 minutes later to secure the three points with a lashed shot across goal.
Handballs go unpunished
There were two instances in this game in which handballs that should have resulted in penalties went unnoticed by referee Roger East. The first raised questions over the possibility that it was deliberate when Steven Davis seemed to block a goal-bound Fernandinho header with his arm. Had the referee decided that it was a deliberate action then the English midfielder would have surely received his marching orders but a corner was the only outcome. Complaints were short-lived as Delph scored from the resulting set piece but had things turned out differently, the incident would seem a certain talking point.
In the second half, Fernandinho was on the opposite side of an appeal as he appeared to have blocked a shot from Long with his right arm. As so often with these instances, many visiting fans will argue that had the penalty been given then the result of the game could have been altered with it popping up with the score at 2-1 and attacking momentum with the away side.
Missing strikers
Southampton frontman and leading goalscorer Pellè was absent from the squad due to suspension over an accumulation of yellow cards. The Italian striker drew harsh criticism from boss Ronald Koeman after arguing his way into the referee’s notebook in last week’s match against Stoke City. This absence highlighted the lack of depth that the South Coast club have up front with Shane Long, who has been primarily utilised as a winger in recent times for the club, filling the gap up front. With the weaknesses at the back that the City team displayed in this game, it could be argued that the bigger presence of Pellè could have made a difference in the match and possibly the result.
The home team started the game with their star striker on the pitch but he succumbed to injury midway through the second period. Fans will be waiting with baited breath on news of the Argentinian’s condition though manager Manuel Pellegrini downplayed it as “nothing important”. Having only just returned to the lineup last match after missing four games due to a hamstring injury ,the 27-year-old has had patches of injury problems over the past two seasons. Should he be forced to sit out then the Citizens will again have to rely on the likes of Sterling and De Bruyne for much of their scoring drive with Wilfried Bony the most likely to fill in up front though youngster Kelechi Iheanacho may see some minutes.
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