MOSCOW, November 6 (RIA Novosti) — The Central Sport Club of the Army Moscow (CSKA) defeated Manchester City 2:1 in England yesterday; the unexpected victory has increased CSKA’s chances of reaching the play-offs in the UEFA Champions League, Russia’s RBK Sports reports.
The first match against Manchester City in Khimki outside Moscow in October ended in a 2:2 draw, showing that CSKA could play on equal footing with the reigning Premier League champions.
Then, the game on Manchester’s home turf saw CSKA outplay Manchester for most of the game; the English team was unable to pull ahead. With a goal at 2 minutes in CSKA’s Seydou Dumbia, Manchester’s Yaya Toure tied it up at 8 minutes, but the home team was unable to catch up after a second goal by Dumbia 34 minutes in. The Daily Mail blamed Coach Manuel Pellegrini for the loss, noting that he sets up his team the same way each time, “despite the very obvious pitfalls against counter-attacking teams.” The Guardian noted a “stunned silence” hitting Etihad Stadium over the course of the match; Manchester is now at the bottom of Group E of the Champions League, and faces the prospect of elimination when it competes with Bayern Munich next month.
Manchester City was hampered earlier when several of its players sustained injuries, including defender Alexander Kolarov, as well as midfielders David Silva and Frank Lampard. Fernandinho and Yaya Toure were also red carded and kicked out of the game after repeatedly challenging referee decisions.
CSKA will play Roma later this month.
