Latest staging post for the Blues’ nomadic pre-season that has stretched from the Alps to Asia and Beijing to Boundary Park was the impressive Volkswagen Arena.
After a very successful Asian tour Roberto Mancini’s men will be happy to have kept up the momentum thanks to a 2-0 win over Bundesliga side Wolfsburg, who have also recently returned from the east.
Conditions were close to perfect on the night and the pitch pristine.
Goals from Sergio Aguero and Yaya Toure, so often on target when the chips were down last season, sealed the deal as City again fielded a mix and match side and experimented with a 3-5-2 formation.
Last season’s top marksman Aguero continued a strong pre-season when accepted Aleks Kolarov’s through ball and, after wrestling past three defenders, toe-poked the ball beyond Benaglio.
Wolfsburg’s concerted response didn’t arrive until the second half when Joe Hart was forced to make a couple of smart saves.
However, it wasn’t long before the Blues doubled their lead when Tevez, who’d gone close moments before, held the ball up allowing Yaya Toure to take over and fire neatly home.
There was a rapturous applause upon the introduction of their former Wolfsburg golden boy Edin Dzeko who replaced Nigel de Jong for the final 15 minutes.
The Bosnian received a standing ovation while chants of ‘Edin Dzeko’ rang out – nice to see that he still remains a popular figure amongst the locals.
Despite some pressure from the home side late in the second half, City managed to keep the Wolves at bay, looking very much the champions as the new season inches ever closer.
City(start) Hart, Zabaleta, Johnson, Kolarov, Savic, Aguero, K Toure, Tevez, de Jong, Y Toure, Razak
Wolfsburg(start) Benaglio, Schafer, Pogatetz, Olic, Dost, Jiracek, Naldo, Knoche, Fagner, Helmes, Rodrigue
