Manchester City v Wigan: Match Review

MANCHESTER CITY 1 - 0 WIGAN
Tevez 83



A routine win perhaps, but one that proved the FA Cup Final will be a lot trickier than first thought.

City made hard work of the dress rehearsal, leaving it until the 83rd minute to deal Wigan another relegation blow.

Roberto Martinez's relegation fighters were the stars of the show; James McCarthy, Jordi Gomez and man of the match Shaun Maloney all showing why Wigan deserve to retain their Premiership status this season.

Even Mancini had words to say about the Latics. 'They don't deserve to be relegated. For sixty minutes they played better than us'. And he was correct. Wigan passed up on a number of glorious opportunities to take the lead, including a one on one chance involving Franco Di Santo that should have seen the back of the net.

But Champions are Champions at the end of the day and Mancini's men were unprepared to surrender their fine home form. Micah Richards and Joleon Lescott were welcomed back into the side and both were effective, shielding the numerous onslaughts of their opponents.

It was Carlos Tevez though who, once again, saved the Blues from embarrassment. On 83 minutes, the bullish Argentine weaved his way around Wigan's defence and curled a stupendous effort into the top left hand corner. 

The FA Cup Final is still very much up for grabs.

Player Ratings
 Joe Hart 7
Had a surprising amount of work to do and made a quality save to deny Franco Di Santo an almost certain goal in the first half.

 Micah Richards 6
The City faithful were delighted to see him back and he aimed to repay their love with eagerness in the challenge and a number of powerful runs were accustomed to seeing from him. Unfortunately, it'll take some time for the fan favourite to get back to his best as he struggled with the pace of the game.

 Joleon Lescott 8
Solid performance from the defender who is desperate to have his place back. Blocked a goal-bound strike from Maloney and combatted Wigan's attack brilliantly with his Championship winning partner, Kompany.

 Vincent Kompany 8
The best defender in the Premier League and possibly in Europe. Never falters.

 Aleksander Kolarov 6
Like Micah, attempted to get up the field but was often wasteful. I expect to see Zaba and Clichy return on Sunday.

 Javi Garcia 5
He's struggled with the pace of the Premier League ever since he arrived and did so again in this match.

 Gareth Barry 8
Picking up form at the right time. Brilliant against United and brilliant again tonight in manning the midfield.

 Yaya Toure 6
A quiet night for Yaya who probably used all of his energy up against Chelsea.

 Samir Nasri 6
Skillful but uninfluential.

 Carlos Tevez 8
This man is an absolute machine. Does he ever tire? With Aguero and Dzeko off the pace, his tenacity was absolutely essential and in the end, won us the game.

 Sergio Aguero 5
Thoroughly exhausted. Substituted at half time.