Stellar Yaya puts City on verge of glory

Newcastle United 0-2 Manchester City

By Zain Alvi | 6th May 2012

Yaya Toure struck twice in the second half to help Manchester City claim a massive 2-0 win and take a huge step towards their first league title since 1968.

In a match that was played with excellent spirit throughout, it took Toure 70 minutes to break the deadlock but it was well worth the wait for the visiting party at Sports Direct Arena.

After Sergio Aguero slid the ball into the path of the Ivory Coast midfielder at the top of the box, he provided a stunning flicked finish to give Tim Krul absolutely no chance in the Magpies goal.

Toon boss Alan Pardew used all his three substitutions in the 12 minutes that followed, with the fresh legs of Shane Ferguson, Ryan Taylor, and Shola Ameobi coming in for the hosts.

However, neither could make an impact on a match where even the in-form Papiss Cisse was reduced to relative anonymity.

In fact, much to the dismay of the home fans at Tyneside, it was the Citizens who scored the second goal as Toure scored from close range to make it 2-0 in the 89th minute.

There was certainly no coming back from the Premier League’s fifth-place side and ultimately, they were condemned to a disappointing defeat that allows third-place Arsenal to go unpunished for yesterday’s 3-3 draw at home to Norwich.

Newcastle entered today’s match trailing the Gunners by two points with a game in hand but will now end the day without covering any additional ground and likely also staying behind Tottenham, who are currently playing at Aston Villa.

Meanwhile, the title race has now tilted significantly towards the blue half of Manchester, with City holding a three-point lead over defending champions Manchester United.

United will host Swansea later this evening but even a win for the Red Devils won’t be enough to help them regain the pole position.

With a superior goal difference, Roberto Mancini’s men remain in control of their destiny and while United will be on the road facing Sunderland in the season’s last match next weekend, City will be at home to relegation-threatened QPR.