It was a case of déjà vu for Peter Crouch at Eastlands last night as the Spurs forward grabbed the winning goal to clinch a Champions League place for the second year running; unfortunately for Crouch, it was an own goal this time round, as his gaffe helped Roberto Mancini’s side end Tottenham’s slim hopes of a fourth-place finish. The result was a timely boost for Stoke City, too; City’s FA Cup final opponents are now ensured Europa League football next season. Here’s the notes from last night’s game…
Tottenham’s Injury Troubles Continue
It’s been a long season, and the injuries are taking their toll on Spurs right now; straight off the back of Gareth Bale’s season-ending ankle injury, Harry Redknapp suffered further misfortunes. The setbacks started before a ball had been kicked with Heurelho Gomes missing out with a back injury, allowing Carlo Cudicini to claim the keeper’s jersey. The Italian stopper duly put in a strong display, making several crucial saves that will give him every chance of retaining the role for Tottenham’s final two matches.
Elsewhere, Wilson Palacios recovered from a knee injury and came in to central midfield, as Redknapp moved Luka Modric wide left in a 4-4-1-1. The shift only lasted half an hour, though; Palacios limped off, with Modric back in his usual central berth as sub Steven Pienaar took up a flank role. William Gallas received treatment twice during the game but was eventually forced off with three minutes to go after heading a Patrick Viera effort off the line.
Having chased fourth place for so long, Spurs now face an uphill task to claim fifth. They are two points behind Liverpool and face a trip to Anfield this weekend, knowing a defeat would give Kenny Dalglish’s men an unassailable lead in the chase for a Europa League spot. Owners of Tottenham’s Fantasy assets will at least take comfort that Tottenham go into gameweek 37 still motivated to earn a result, despite last night’s defeat. Harry Redknapp gave us no doubt that his side remain focused as the season draws to a close…
“We’ll go to Liverpool and try to win and then try to beat Birmingham. Two wins and we’ll finish above Liverpool. That’s what we need to do.”
Carlos Tevez
Sidelined for the last three gameweeks, the Argentine came off the bench with seven minutes to go and looked his busy self, almost scoring on the final whistle. It’s a major boost for Roberto Mancini ahead of this weekend’s FA Cup Final with Stoke and with City just two points behind Arsenal, Tevez’s return will spearhead their chase for third place as they face up to (STK, bol) in the final two games. Should Tevez start at Wembley however, there will be real doubts as to whether Mancini will field his skipper in next Tuesday’s league clash.
Richards’ Return Causes Fantasy Woes
Micah Richards came back into the City XI, starting at right-back in a reshuffle that saw Pablo Zabaleta move to left-back. This proved a real source of frustration for owners of Aleksander Kolarov, as the Serbian dropped to the bench.
A bloody nose forced Zabeleta off after 57 minutes, with Kolarov emerging for the remainder. Despite City’s clean sheet, neither grabbed sufficient minutes to earn the points, giving them paltry returns over the double gameweek. The full-back rotation has proved costly for Fantasy Owners over the season; with 16 clean sheets, City clearly have defensive potential but while Joe Hart has 162 pts, Kolarov and Zabaleta have 150 between them.
City Rotation
Mancini’s lineup at Wembley will be a key guide for his teamsheet for gameweek 37’s league clash with Stoke three days later. While City remain motivated to claim third spot, it’s hard to imagine that Mancini will resist the temptation to rest players following the weekend showpiece. As mentioned, Tevez looks vulnerable should he be deployed for the bulk of Saturday’s game. Elsewhere we should expect further rotation at full-back, with Kolarov perhaps set to see action on Tuesday night should he be benched in the Final. Despite last night’s frustration then, his owners may still see the merits of holding him for the final two gameweeks.
David Silva and Yaya Toure are set to play their third match in seven days on Saturday – they both look candidates for a rest, with Shaun Wright-Phillips and Patrick Vieira the obvious replacements. Gareth Barry, who missed out again last night, remains a doubt for Saturday’s game – he is set to find out his fate today following a hamstring injury.
