Stoke City Vs. Manchester City: Final Score 1-1, Late Chances Come To Nothing For Champions

Manchester City never have the best of luck against Stoke City, particularly at the Britannia Stadium, and the curse continued with a lively 1-1 draw. It was a game that, on the whole, the visitors will feel like they should have won, but Peter Crouch's rather controversial 15th minute goal, which saw him lurch his way through a packed defence (possibly with the aid of his left arm, although there was no definitive evidence one way or another) then slot past Joe Hart from close range, put them in a hole that they couldn't easily get three points from.

Debutante Javi Garcia managed to get the champions back on level terms before halftime, nodding home a very Stoke-y goal from a free kick. It wasn't enough, and the hosts enjoyed a strong second half in which they intermittently threatened to retake the lead. The visitors, of course, were always going to subject the Potters to a late onslaught, and they nearly snatched a winner twice in the last two minutes, with Asmir Begovic somehow tipping another Garcia header onto the post before Ryan Shawcross cleared an absolutely delightful dink by Edin Dzeko off the line with the last kick of the match. More dropped points for Manchester City...