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Given's outstanding Manchester City debut was just part of a
performance that has pleased Mark Hughes as he reflects on the 1-0 win
over Middlesbrough.
The new keeper made a string of superb saves to
deny Boro's Alfonso Alves, but the Blues' manager was keen to stress
that the team deserved the three points that has put them into ninth
place in the Barclays Premier League table.
Hughes says, “We
controlled the game for long periods, but they had a number of chances
where we needed the quality and expertise of Shay to stop them scoring.
"Overall
I felt we deserved the victory, they made it difficult because they put
so many people behind the ball and we had to be patient and try to work
some positions."
Expanding on the contribution of the Irish
international keeper to the win, he added: "Everybody has seen his
quality over a long period of time, we all know he is an outstanding
goalkeeper. On a few occasions he showed his experience and was able to
get us out of a situation, which we were very grateful for.
"He
was a very calming influence on the back four, which was a young one
today. It has not had that many games together, so it was important
that we had that reassurance behind them. I thought his distribution
was great as well, so people will understand why I brought him to the
club."
Goal scorer Craig Bellamy also came in for praise from the
Manager, who concluded, "We said before the game that we had to
recognise when we had one on one positions, and that's what Craig is
very good at. He was able to get a yard of space and that was enough
for him.
"Craig is as sharp as a tack at the moment, he is at the
top of his form and free of injuries, so he is a different Craig
Bellamy to the one I had at Blackburn. He goes for 90 minutes, asks
questions of the back four all the time and creates space for other
people. I thought he was outstanding."
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