Forthcoming Fixtures

Unfortunately most of City's Manchester Senior cup round rubber ties have been immaterial of the results because they lost against the two finalists elect in Bolton Wanderers and Manchester United even before the reserve league started back in August of last year.

However City still fielded perhaps one of the strongest sides that they could have with many players full of experience at this level.

The match could have been all over in the first twenty one minutes when John Guidetti should have scored a hat-trick with all coming from crosses that John got himself in the right position as he timed his runs right but he was just trying to force the ball too much when placement would probably been more effective; the old addage of you do not always have to score from a great strike is something John should heed if he is to progress.

Guidetti however got his chance from the spot when his through ball to Abdisiliam Ibrahim allowed him into the area where he went down from a miss-timed challenge. Guidetti gave the Stockport goalkeeper Ian Ormson no chance with the penalty as he fired into the corner of the goal.

Guidetti nearly creating another opening ten minutes before the break when he used his strength to hold of the defender and ran forward to goal and let fly with a twenty five yard shot that went just wide of the near post.

Then it was the turn of sixteen year old defender Courtney Meppen-Walter to light the crowd up when after good work by Jeremy Helan on the left played the ball back to Courtney who let fly a thunderous thirty yard shot that rattled the post and had Orsom all ends up beaten.

The second half took a while to get going but when it did it was that man Guidetti who was guilty yet again of not choosing the right finish or option as Abdul Razak played the ball out to Meppen-Walter on the left who again delivered a fine cross but John failed to adjust himself properly and took a poor first touch and allowed his shot to be blocked and Ibrahim scewed his shot wide from the rebound.

Cue the change with Harry Bunn coming on and with his first touch he takes a Guidetti pass on the left of the area and coolly slots the ball under Ormson and into the far corner of the goal.

City continued to dominate and finally got another goal when a free kick from substitute Ahmad Benali that Kieran Kennedy and the defender got up to head but it went back into the area where John Guidetti manouevered himself to deliver that great acrobatic overhead bicycle kick that went in off the underside of the crossbar.

Three minutes later and the referee failed to award City a stone wall penalty when again Guidetti was the provider for a neat little ball into the area where Ahmad Benali flicked the ball up over the goalkeeper close to him; almost Lionel Messi-esque and Ormson brought Benali clean down but the referee waived play away unbelievably.

Guidetti managed to get the match ball when this time Benali turned provider as John powered in the shot as he held of the defender from Benali's pass to seal a comfortable victory in the ninetieth minute.

Lets hope John Guidetti concentrates on his finishing more in training this next week as the game against Chelsea on Thursday he will have to better as he will not get so many chances as he did tonight; but his overall play was much better than it has been of late and that is a good building block to work from. Lets just hope the team is not burdened with playing Mancini again.

Teams:

Manchester City:

Karius, Logan, Meppen-Walter, Ibrahim (Benali 67), Wabara (Kennedy 77), McGivern, Poole, Razak, Guidetti, Mancini, Helan (Bunn 67)

Subs: Halsall(GK), Clowes

Stockport County:

Ormson, Ible (Rhodes-Murphy 69), Brownhill, Sunderland, Thompson, Windsor, Darkwah, Graham, Mitten (Meehan 57), Whitehead, Omoboye (Downey 73)

Subs: Whitehurst(GK), Canon

Attendance: 287