BLACKBURN 0, MAN CITY 4
MANCHESTER City’s troubles surrounding Carlos Tevez seem insignificant compared to the crisis enveloping second-bottom Blackburn Rovers, their latest opponents.
The 4-0 defeat only served to increase the pressure on manager Steve Kean as fans again called for his sacking and staged a post match sit in.
City, meanwhile, shrugged aside their own minor difficulties to post a win which keeps them in second spot and on the shirt tails of their Mancunian rivals.
And in the absence of Roberto Mancini, who had to leave early supposedly to catch a flight to Italy, it was left to first-team coach David Platt to face the media.
It looked at one stage as though it might be a frustrating afternoon as City took until the 56th minute to make the breakthrough.
They had also lost Argentine striker Sergio Aguero in the first half through a groin strain, though that proved a minor setback and was hardly felt given the size and quality of City’s squad.
That was something touched upon by Platt who said: “We know that we’re blessed in having players to choose from.
“We’ve got a squad where we can make changes and not suffer from a drop in performance.”
City were the superior side in the opening half when only determined defending from the hosts kept them at bay.
They created a hatful of chances as Mario Balotelli twice, Adam Johnson, Samir Nasri, Aleksandar Kolarov and James Milner missed a procession of chances.
Balotelli struck an upright after the restart and it looked only a matter of time before City scored as was proved.
Johnson finally broke the deadlock curling in a delightful shot from 25 yards as it opened the floodgates.
Balotelli quickly made it 2-0 after converting a cross from Nasri as City were now unstoppable.
The Italian then started the move from inside his own half which led to City’s third goal while substitute Stefan Savic added the fourth.
And by the end the City fans had forgotten Tevez who, unlike last season, is no longer an indispensible figure whose goals were pivotal to the team’s success.
They have since signed Aguero, Edin Dzeko has emerged as a world class striker after a difficult start to his City career while Balotelli is also maturing into an important player.
Carlos who?