Team news

City missing banned Vieira Manchester City midfielder Patrick Vieira will miss the Barclays Premier League match against Liverpool on Sunday as he starts a three-match suspension.

Vieira has been punished by the FA following a challenge on Stoke's Glenn Whelan during the draw in midweek.

Martin Petrov is out with a knee injury with fears he could be sidelined for up to four weeks, while Carlos Tevez is still in Argentina dealing with a domestic matter.

However, Craig Bellamy could come into contention after stepping up his fitness following a knee problem.

Tevez will miss his third game in a row and City then take on Stoke in an FA Cup replay followed by title-chasing Chelsea in a hectic round of fixtures.

Mancini is anxious to see Tevez back in a City shirt sooner rather than later.

He said: "I hope he comes back as quickly as possible. I am frustrated he is not with us. It is a problem as we have some very important games coming up and we need him.

"I don't think he will be here on Sunday but maybe he will come back Monday for the Stoke game." Liverpool midfielder Yossi Benayoun faces a late fitness test ahead of their trip.

The Israel international has recovered from a broken rib which has sidelined him since January 13, but did not feature in last night's Europa League victory over Unirea Urziceni because of a back problem.

Maxi Rodriguez returns to the squad having been ineligible for the European tie.

Centre-back Sotirios Kyrgiakos serves the second game of a three-match ban while striker Fernando Torres and full-back Glen Johnson are still not fit after knee injuries.

Benitez has tried to play down the significance of the match, with City currently occupying the final Champions League spot one point ahead of Liverpool and with a match in hand.

He believes there is plenty of time remaining in the season for things to change significantly - especially with Tottenham and Aston Villa also challenging.

"It will be an important game for both teams and we will try to win," he said.

"If you cannot, it is better not to lose, but the main thing for us is to try to win.

"We will try to attack and we know we will have to score goals if we want to win.

Manchester City 0-0 Liverpool

Last modified 08:40 22/02/10

Pause Play

Left

Right

View thumbnails View full screen Turn captions on/off

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

• 
• 

Prev

Next

• Page 1
• Page 2
• Page 3

This drab stalemate was indicative of the race for fourth spot this season - nobody seems to want it.

City have declared their intention to break the big four's stranglehold, while Liverpool are adamant they will still qualify for the Champions League, despite their turbulent campaign.

But actions speak louder than words, and on this evidence neither side has the conviction or desire to seize the opportunity to claim the coveted final Champions League spot on offer.

That it took an hour for the first shot on target says everything about the dire spectacle served up by two sides, which was the worst possible advert for the proposed play-offs for fourth place.

City have gone backwards under Roberto Mancini, swapping the flair and cavalier football under Mark Hughes for a pragmatic, ultra-cautious approach more at home in Serie A than the pulsating Premier League.

Mancini's men dropped to fifth on goal difference following Tottenham's emphatic 3-0 win over Wigan, their recent form betraying their self-proclaimed top-four credentials.

Two draws, an unconvincing win over Bolton and defeat at Hull in their last four Premier League games have cast doubt over the wisdom of replacing Hughes with the Italian.

And Liverpool, who ran Manchester United so close in the title race last season, provided conclusive proof they have lost the purpose and drive that saw them emerge as genuine contenders last term.

Their six bookings, which will earn them a £25,000 fine from the FA, was testimony to the belligerent and disjointed nature of their performance, which emphasised just how far they have fallen behind Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal.

Steven Gerrard was devoid of his customary inspirational qualities, while Fernando Torres's emergence for the last 15 minutes was a token gesture from Rafa Benitez, the striker not yet ready following a five-week injury lay-off.

City, without star striker Carlos Tevez, still in Argentina on compassionate leave following the premature arrival of his second daughter, laboured with Emmanual Adebayor working up front as a lone striker.

Predictably, given what was at stake for both teams, the first-half descended into a chaotic tale of missed passes and snatched opportunities, with neither side displaying the composure to play fluenty.

The first flicker of a chance came a minute before the break, when Martin Skrtel rose unchallenged to meet a Steven Gerrard corner but sent his free header wide of the target.

City emerged for the second-half wih greater endeavour, new signing Adam Johnson continuing to impress following  his £7million move from Middlesbroigh after switching to the right with Shaun Wright-Phillips.

Johnson was the most dangerous player on the pitch, his darting runs and pace causing Liverpool to double up on him whenever he was on the ball, in a bid to contain his threat.

Emmanuel Adebayor provided the first shot on target on the hour, his fierce low drive blocked by Jose Reina, who showed impressive agility and reactions to get down to the goal-bound effort and divert it.

Adebayor found himself through on goal with 10 minutes to go, with only Reina to beat, but Skrtel's superbly-time challenged denied the City striker, whose hesitancy and poor first touch also contributed to the missed opportunity.

In a measure of their desperation, with the game heading towards an inevitable goalless conclusion, both sides indulged in late penalty appeals. Liverpool's seemingly more legitimate that City's.

With six minutes to go, Adebayor flung himself to the ground following a clear nudge from Daniel Agger. Had Adebayor not gone to ground with theatrics that would have impressed the BAFTAS committee, he may well have earned his side a spot-kick.

As it was, ref Peter Walton was unconvinced, just as he was in the 90th minute when Vincent Kompany clearly tried to trip substitute Yossi Benayoun, whose crime was his honesty in managing to stay on his feet as he stumbled to keep possession.

At the final whistle, City fans booed their team, just as they had done in their previous home game against Stoke, when they had surrendered a 1-0 lead to draw in the FA Cup.

Mancini takes his side to Stoke for that replay on Wednesday, before a trip to Premier League leaders Chelsea on Saturday. After that there is another potentially seismic game for City, against fellow fourth-place contenders Tottenham.

Those next three games are likely to define City's season, and will determined whether Mancini's reign at Eastlands will be short-lived, with the club's hierarchy having the option to terminate his contract at the end of the campaign.

Liverpool, whose only hope of silverware lies with the much-maligned Europa League, would appear to have the easier run-in, yet if this is the best these two sides can produce, fourth place may ultimately pass them both by.