It took longer than Roberto Mancini would have liked, but his Manchester City side had finnally been able to break down a stubborn Newcastle United defence - thanks mostly to the antics of Magpies left back Ryan Taylor, who managed to make two major mistakes in about as many minutes, conceding a penalty for the opener before being obliterated by Micah Richards for the second goal.
Manchester City Vs. Newcastle, 2011 Premier League: City 2-0 Up At Halftime
Before Mario Balotelli found the back of the net, Newcastle had been playing fairly well. Granted, City had most of the possession, but they weren't creating many chances (Sergio Aguero had buzzed a shot just over the bar on the turn, and Tim Krul had done well to keep a Balotelli header out) and whenever the visitors had the ball they were very positive with it, even drawing Joe Hart into a good save from Demba Ba.
And then Ryan Taylor stuck out his hand to stop Yaya Toure's shot, and things went rather rapidly downhill - Balotelli left Krul motionless as he rolled the ball into the back of the net and then a simple situation led to City doubling their lead, Ryan Taylor yielding to pressure from City right back Micah Richards in his own penalty area, allowing Richards to steer a neat finish beyond Krul to make it 2-0 right at the stroke of halftime.
So, it looks as though Newcastle are about to lose their first game of the season, unless something very odd happens.
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