Late goals from Yaya Toure and Sergio Aguero helped Manchester City record a 2-0 victory over Aston Villa at Villa Park tonight.
By virtue of the Villans' resistance it took some 82 minutes to open the scoring as Toure stroked home after a number of defenders inexplicably backed away.
Aguero put the result beyond doubt six minutes later to help the Premier League champions to a tough, yet deserved victory in the West Midlands.
Below, Sports Mole analyses what happened at Villa Park and how it happened.
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Match statistics
ASTON VILLA
Shots: 5
On target: 1
Possession: 32%
Corners: 0
Fouls: 6
MANCHESTER CITY
Shots: 25
On target: 7
Possession: 68%
Corners: 7
Fouls: 4
Was the result fair?
Undoubtedly. While Aston Villa deserve some credit over the length of time in which they kept Manchester City and their world-class talents at bay, Manuel Pellegrini's side, like all great Premier League champions, stayed patient and saw their perseverance rewarded after no fewer than 25 attempts at goal. It would have been immensely flattering on Villa had Pellegrini and co. left the West Midlands with a 0-0 draw. The best team won.
Aston Villa's performance
Aston Villa's attacking plans were scuppered right from the off as Paul Lambert had to shuffle his pack and play Andreas Weimann as a striker after Gabriel Agbonlahor fell ill in the warm up. Did this impact on the result? Certainly. Weimann, despite his best efforts, failed to lead the line as effectively as Agbonlahor has done this season, resulting in the lack of a focal point for much of the evening. Villa's defensive display should offer some positives for Lambert on a day when his side were beaten before a ball was kicked.
Manchester City's performance
Having dropped seven points already this season, Manchester City went to Villa Park knowing that they could ill afford further set backs if they were to challenge high-flying Chelsea for the Premier League title. Yet even with the scores deadlocked on the 80-minute mark, City refused to panic and a much-needed three points is their reward. We did not get to see Villa pose their defence many questions all evening, but what is clear is that they have no intention of surrendering their title just five months after winning it.
Sports Mole's man of the match
David Silva: The diminutive Spaniard was Manchester City's go-to-guy for the entire 84 minutes that he was on the field, and would have ended the night with a few more assists under his belt had some of his teammates brought their shooting boots. Nevertheless, Silva was central to City's victory and everything they created tonight.
Biggest gaffe
The greatest trick Yaya Toure ever played was convincing the Premier League that he had lost his magic. That might have been why, instead of rushing to close him down, a number of Aston Villa defenders backed away and allowed the much-maligned Ivorian to pick his spot and side-foot beyond Brad Guzan on 82 minutes to break Villa's resistance. It was a fatal error by all involved and Paul Lambert will be irate with his defence.
Referee performance
Chris Foy had a relatively quiet night at the office after brandishing just one yellow card - a first-half booking for Aleksandar Kolarov - all evening at Villa Park. Fortunately, the match itself passed without major incident and we are left discussing Manchester City's dogged victory rather than a refereeing mistake.
What next?
Aston Villa: The Villans travel to Merseyside to face Everton on October 18 following an international break next week.
Manchester City: City, meanwhile, host Tottenham Hotspur at the Etihad Stadium in a fortnight.
Shane Callaghan
