Vital Report: Man City 4 Cardiff 2

Cardiff were always going to be up against it when facing Man City on Saturday but we pushed them very hard until their superior firepower, which saw them take their seasons tally to 100-goals, eventually meant that they overcome us.

A brave battle was fought but eventually lost with two goals in the final 15-minutes enough to ensure that City won 4-2 in the end at the Etihad.

Such are the resources available to Man City they were able to make seven changes to the side that had beaten Blackburn in the FA cup so emphatically.

Magnus Wolff Eikrem wouldn’t come in from the start for Cardiff with Jordon Mutch fit to return, when it wasn’t thought he would be. Kevin McNaughton, Ben Turner and Aron Gunnarsson also came back in with Bo-Kyung Kim, Mark Hudson, Declan John and Peter Odemwingie missing out.

Instantly Man City went on the attack with Edin Dzeko going down in the box under McNaughton’s challenge, nothing was given but the pressure continued to be piled on with David Marshall keeping out Dzeko and a goal bound effort from his own defender Ben Turner.

The new Goal Decision System was required for the opening goal with Dzeko not denied this time as McNaughton’s attempted clearance off the line, from his miss hit shot, didn’t come before it had crossed the line.

City continued to threaten but we stunned them when Craig Noone, who had another impressive afternoon, slotted past Joe Hart.

If we were going to have had much chance of getting something I think we had to get through to half time level, but within minutes of equalising Jesus Navas picked up a loose ball to restore the lead.

Mutch and Noone were denied by Hart as Cardiff battled away, trying to get back into the game again but the resistance was broken 15-minutes from time as Yaya Toure’s power saw him win the ball from Noone. He advanced forward and after a one-two with Sergio Aguero fired past Marshall to open up a two-goal lead.

Aguero made sure of the win for City three-minutes later with another fine goal.

The Cardiff fight remained though with Noone again denied by Hart but from the corner Fraizer Campbell prodded the ball home, meaning he’d scored home and away against City, to give us the final word but it wasn’t enough.