12:31 AM ET, Mon March 15, 2010

Sunderland 1-1 Manchester City | Premier League report

The Guardian — Adam Johnson loomed high on Steve Bruce's January shopping list but once Roberto Mancini registered an interest in the then Middlesbrough winger, Sunderland's outbid manager had no option but to concede defeat.That was what Mancini's City were heading for on Wearside until Johnson, a late substitute, curled in a sublime stoppage-time equaliser to secure a potentially vital point in his side's pursuit of fourth place."It's going to be very tight but I think we have a good chance of qualifying for the Champions League," said a previously agitated Mancini, his sanity quite possibly preserved by ...

6 hours ago

Sunderland 1 City 1: Player ratings

Manchester Evening News — Find out how we rated the Manchester City players for their performance in the 1-1 draw at Sunderland.

8 hours ago

Sunderland 1 City 1

Manchester Evening News — Manchester City rescued a point in injury time against Sunderland thanks to substitute Adam Johnson's superb finish. Kenwyne Jones headed the Black Cats ahead early on and although the Blues rallied after the break, substitute Roque Santa Cruz and Shaun Wright-Phillips both missed good chances. However, Johnson made the breakthrough into added time with a curler into the top corner.

8 hours ago

Game of two halves for Mancini

Manchester Evening News — Roberto Mancini praised his Manchester City side’s second-half performance but criticised their first in the 1-1 Barclays Premier League draw at Sunderland. City created a host of chances after the break but it was not until stoppage time that Adam Johnson curled in an equaliser to cancel out Kenwyne Jones’ early opener.

8 hours ago

Sunderland v Manchester City - as it happened | Rob Bagchi

The Guardian — Adam Johnson came to Manchester City's rescue with a superb late equaliser to hold a gutsy Sunderland side Block 1 Rob will be here from 3.30pm. In the meantime read the opinion of the Sunderland chairman, Niall Quinn, on players' wages. He reckons it is time for clubs to get a grip on the amount of money they are spending on player wages.Quinn asks Premier League to control clubs' wage billsNiall Quinn, the Sunderland chairman, has called for the Premier League to restrain spending on players' wages after revealing that his club made a £26m loss for the last financial year.Quinn said all the ...

10 hours ago

Mancini rap for Wright-Phillips

Manchester Evening News — Roberto Mancini has ordered Shaun Wright-Phillips to stop moaning about a new contract - and focus on City's Champions League push. The winger's step-father Ian stirred up a hornets' nest last week by claiming the Blues were short-changing his son over a new deal. Wright-Phillips still has just over two years to run on his £60,000-a-week contract.

March 13, 2010

Mancini searching for City consistency

Manchester Evening News — Roberto Mancini insists his players will have to become the 200 per centers to qualify for next season's Champions League. That's because City's boss believes his side will only secure a top-four Premier League finish if they "want it 200 per cent".

March 12, 2010

Squad sheets: Sunderland v Manchester City

The Guardian — The last time these teams met was in December at Eastlands when Mark Hughes was sacked and replaced by Roberto Mancini immediately after City's 4-3 victory. Back then Sunderland were a month into a run of 14 Premier League games without a win that forced the chairman, Niall Quinn, to publicly back Steve Bruce by declaring Sunderland's manager will still have a job even if the team are relegated. Mancini, though, is highly likely to be out of one should City fail to make the top four and the Italian, whose players aim to build on their victory at Chelsea, regards three points as imperative. Lou...

March 12, 2010

Shaun Wright-Phillips under fire from Roberto Mancini over pay dispute

The Guardian — • Winger unhappy with £70,000-a-week contract offer• Manager vexed over publicising of private issueRoberto Mancini, the Manchester City manager, has expressed his disappointment with Shaun Wright-Phillips's decision to go public with his grievances about the club's reluctance to give him the £25m contract that he wants.Wright-Phillips, who will have two years remaining on his £60,000-a-week deal at the end of the season, has turned down City's offer of a year-long extension and a pay rise to £70,000-a-week. The England international has asked for a five‑year contract with a weekly salary clos...

March 12, 2010

Robinho's Santos wish

Manchester Evening News — Manchester City striker Robinho has reiterated his desire to extend his loan stay at Santos and hopes talks have already been initiated with the Barclays Premier League club. Robinho returned to Santos in January, penning a six-month loan deal which is set to expire on August 4.

March 12, 2010
  • It's Gunner be tough for us The Sun ALEX FERGUSON believes Arsenal will be the biggest threat to Utd's title aspirations
  • Ferguson fuels Birmingham resistance The Independent Arsène Wenger be warned. Amid the talk of Arsenal's run-in being the easiest of the title contenders, their next away opponents have been casually bracketed with Burnley, Hull and Wolves as a source of potentially easy pickings. But Birmingham City, as their manager Alex McLeish noted after their fightback against Everton, are a team who never give up.
  • Aston Villa: Martin O'Neill says draw with Stoke a fair result Birmingham Mail Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill admitted his side did not do enough to warrant victory against Stoke at a windy Britannia Stadium.
  • Rooney's class claims new victim in Fulham The Independent Sir Alex Ferguson's minor revelation in his programme notes was that he has set his side "a title target – to win every game between now and the end of the season!" Note the exclamation mark. It suggests that this little pact is just a bit of training ground fun, made in jest like the goal-scoring bets he'd once have with Cristiano Ronaldo and the talk he'll probably soon have with Wayne Rooney about him scoring 42 goals this season. "I don't know about that but I'm not putting it beyond him," Ferguson said of that particular target last night.
  • David Beckham in tears as cruel achilles injury in AC Milan win wrecks World Cup dream Daily Mail David Beckham was in tears on Sunday night when his dream of being the first England player to appear in four World Cups was wrecked after he suffered a ruptured achilles tendon during AC Milan's 1-0 win over Chievo.
  • Martin Samuel: Jose Mourinho - just stop needling Chelsea and come clean Daily Mail If Mourinho knows Chelsea have a method of injecting players back to fitness that is beyond the capacity of their rivals he needs to clarify this, leading to a formal investigation.