Real Racing Club v Manchester City
Thursday December 18, 2008, 8.45pm
Estadio El Sardinero - Att:
Teams
Real Racing Club: Coltorti, Garay, Cesar Navas, Tchite, Colsa (Lacen 77), Munitas, O. Serrano, Luccin, Valera, J. Pereira, Marcano.
unused subs: Mario, Juanjo, Pinillos, J. Goncalves, Christian, Edu Bedia.
City: Schmeichel,
Zabaleta, Richards, Ben Haim, Garrido, Hamann, Fernandes, Elano
(Kompany 60), Vassell, Robinho (Ireland h-t), Evans (Caicedo 76).
unused subs: Hart, Ball, Onuoha, Logan.
Goals: 1-0 (Pereira 17), 2-0 (Serrano 29), 3-0 (Valera 54), 3-1 (Caicedo 90)
Bookings:
RRC: Marcano (11), Serrano (12), Cesar Navas (48)
City: Ben Haim (17), Hamann (26), Elano (49), Zabaleta (70), Kompany (82)
Referee: S Gumienny
Pre match:
Mark Hughes rang the changes as he eyed some important games coming up
at home. Kasper Schmeichel replaced Joe Hart for his first appearance
since coming on as a replacement against Hull a month ago. Tal Ben Haim
replaced Richard Dunne, while Javi Garrido returned to left back in his
home country. Gelson Fernandes was back for the first time since
November’s defeat to Spurs, and Ched Evans was up front.
The Match
With
their side needing a win to give themselves any chance of progressing
to the next round, the home fans generated huge noise in the compact
stadium from the off. Marcano saw yellow on 11 minutes for hauling down
Evans, and Serrano joined him in the book for charging down the free
kick from a couple of yards away – but Garrido’s second attempt flew a
long way over.
Tal Ben Haim was also booked on 17 minutes, and
from the quickly-taken free kick the hosts took the lead. Serrano broke
down the left and crossed, the ball squirted out of Schmeichel's
grasp and Pereira poked it home from close range.
Real
were on top and City were struggling to impose themselves, but Robinho
whipped a shot just over the bar on 28 minutes. But a minute later Real
had doubled the lead, Serrano exchanging passes with Pereira and bursting through to slip it past Schmeichel.
Tchite tried his luck with a good volley on the turn on 38 minutes – but it went straight at Schmeichel.
City’s
keeper needed treatment four minutes before the break when he took a
blow to the head while racing out to get the ball away from Pereira.
The Racing players and fans wanted him booked for a foul, but the
referee sensibly just gave a corner to their loud disgust. Schmeichel
recovered completely and caught the resulting corner easily.
So
not the best half in terms of performance from City – but with PSG
beating FC Twente by the same scoreline at the break, the Blues were
set to end the group stage in first place.
Tempers boiled over on
48 minutes when Elano clashed with Cesar Navas, who became the fifth
player to go into the book. The Brazilian and Luccin continued to chip
away at each other and had to be separated, and Elano received a card
himself. He nearly redeemed himself with an overhead kick that went
straight at the keeper a few minutes later – but the flag was up for an
infringement anyway.
The Spanish side went further ahead on 54
minutes when Benitez’s cross from the left was nodded back across goal
from the far post inti the path of Valera, who could
not miss from close range. They were also now looking at third place
and qualification for the draw on Friday by oustripping PSG on goal
difference as it stood.
Tchite missed a great chance on 63
minutes after going one-on-one with Schmeichel, rounding the keeper
outside the box but then skewing his shot right across the face of
goal. Felipe Caicedo, on as a substitute laid it off nicely to Vassell
on 76 minutes, but his cross was hammered over the bar by Hamann from
outside the area. Zabaleta and Kompany both went into the book as a
bad-tempered night drew to a close.
But the biggest news of the
night came when it emerged that PSG had gone 4-0 up with two late goals
against Twente – and therefore knocking the Spanish side out on goal
difference, despite their impressive display in Santander.
The hosts’ misery was compounded in stoppage time when Zabaleta crossed to Felipe Caicedo
and the Ecuadorian finished neatly to bag his first goal for the Blues,
putting Real even further behind on goal difference with not enough
time to claw it back.
Thus City went through on top of the group,
avoiding teams from the Champions League despite a below-par display in
northern Spain.
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