Manchester City faced the first real test of their Champions League credentials. They got an F-. Despite a pretty good start for the visitors at Bayern Munich's Allianz Arena, with Roberto Mancini's attacking quartet of Edin Dzeko, Sergio Aguero, Samir Nasri and David Silva causing problems for the makeshift back line the Germans were fielding. Silva really ought to have earned a penalty early on, and Dzeko should have done far more than shoot straight at Manuel Neuer with the goal gaping from six yards.
Bayern Munich Vs. Manchester City, 2011 Champions League: Bayern Cruise As City Outclassed
Those early forays into home territory seemed to portend an open game with both teams attacking, but it was something of a false start for City and Bayern soon clicked into gear. A near-miss from Bastian Schweinsteiger that saw the midfielder carve through City's defence with ease was a warning shot - two minutes later Mario Gomez gave them the real deal, poking home from two yards after Joe Hart was forced into an excellent double save from Franck Ribery and Thomas Muller with Kolo Toure and Gael Clichy disinterested bystanders. He couldn't do anything about the third shot.
The situation repeated itself not ten minutes later when Daniel van Buyten flicked a free kick towards the far post. Again, Hart reacted well and made a fine stop. Again, the defence was sluggish, and again Gomez was on hand for the tap in - the easiest Champions League brace ever scored. 2-0 was essentially game over for City. Despite their ferocious attack, it was unlikely that they’d manage to score twice against a rearguard which has only conceded once all season, even with centre half Holger Badstuber missing.
If the first half was the injury, the second was the insult. Roberto Mancini has a cadre of elite strikers at his disposal. Keeping Dzeko, Aguero and Carlos Tevez happy is a major part of his job, and on today's evidence, he's doing nothing like it. Dzeko was yanked off at half time and proceded to throw a minor fit. Tevez refused to warm up when asked to take the field. I think I ought to repeat that: Carlos Tevez, a man paid £200,000 per week (or 33p a second) to play football, refused to play football.
Not that Tevez would have made a difference anyway - Bayern completely dominated possession in the second half, and City could barely get a touch. The shot differential tells the story: Manchester City had 9, Bayern 24, and the hosts’ lead was never threatened, the match finishing at 2-0. That’s now six points from six for Jupp Heynckes’ side, who’ve been phenomenal in both European and domestic play, and if they can get a win over Napoli in their next contest they’ll be virtually guaranteed a place in the knockout rounds. As for City... well, something needs to change, and fast.
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