City closes gap on United after West Ham stroll but loses Silva
Print Edition
MANCHESTER City climbed to within one point of third-placed neighbor United with a comfortable 2-0 English Premier League victory over West Ham United yesterday to end a difficult week on a high.
James Collins’s freak own goal and Sergio Aguero’s 20th league strike of the season secured a routine win and the only surprise was that City failed to add to its lead after the Argentine’s 36th-minute effort.
The victory came after a bad week in which City was beaten 2-4 by United in the Manchester derby, prompting speculation about the future of manager Manuel Pellegrini and a number of leading players.
City playmaker David Silva was carried off on a stretcher in the second half with a head injury after he was caught by the elbow of Cheikhou Kouyate.
Champion City has 64 points, one behind United which lost 0-1 at Chelsea on Saturday, and two adrift of second-placed Arsenal which has a game in hand and beat Reading 2-1 after extra-time in the FA Cup semifinal at Wembley, London, on Saturday. Significantly, City is now seven clear of fifth-placed Liverpool — in FA Cup semifinal action against Aston Villa yesterday — having played a league game more than the Merseysiders
West Ham, which climbed as high as fourth in the table in December, remained 10th having won just one of its last 11 league matches.
“When we lose we have a lot of criticism and that is part of football,” City midfielder Yaya Toure told Sky Sports.
“Today we showed great team spirit and it was very important to get the three points. We will continue to fight until the end.”
Balance of power
City’s Old Trafford defeat had prompted talk of the realignment of the balance of power in Manchester so the visit of a sliding West Ham side was timely.
The hosts fashioned a number of early chances with their slick passing but their breakthrough in the 18th minute came from an unlikely source.
The marauding Jesus Navas burst down the right flank and his low cross careered off defender Collins before looping over goalkeeper Adrian and deflecting in off the crossbar.
The second goal, however, was more eye-catching.
After intercepting a stray West Ham pass the hosts broke with searing pace and after exchanging passes with Navas, Aguero fired under Adrian.
Straight after halftime Aguero had an effort blocked by Karl Jenkinson and Aleksander Kolarov blazed wide.
In the 67th Silva was caught by Kouyate and, following an eight-minute delay, the Spaniard was carried from the field receiving oxygen amid concerns he might miss the rest of the season.
West Ham defended resiliently to restrict the damage and had late chances to set up a tense finish but Stewart Downing had a shot blocked by Eliaquim Mangala and Kevin Nolan was denied by goalkeeper Joe Hart.
Yesterday’s other top-flight match sees Tottenham Hotspur looking to strengthen its bid for European football next season away to Newcastle United, with some unhappy home fans planning to boycott the St James’ Park clash in protest at what they see as owner Mike Ashley’s mismanagement of the club.
On Saturday, Chelsea surged 10 points clear of Arsenal with the 1-0 win over visiting United, with Eden Hazard bolstering his player-of-the-year credentials with the only goal that halted third-place United’s six-game winning run.
If Chelsea wins at Arsenal next Sunday, Jose Mourinho’s side can secure the title with four games to spare with a victory at Leicester on April 29.
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