2. If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It
Last season Citys defence was the most watertight in the Premier League and at the heart of their success was the central pairing of Vincent Kompany and Joleon Lescott. This season Mancini has played around with his back four with Lescott occasionally being dropped to the bench. Against Dortmund Mancini opted to partner captain Kompany with new signing and relatively inexperienced centre back, Matija Nastasic. The 19 year old didnt have a particularly bad game but having suffered such a demoralising defeat against Real Madrid in their opening group match, Mancini might have been expected to go with the tried and tested pairing. But the real problems arrived for City when the Italian decided to alter his formation in the second half and go with three at the back. Aleksandar Kolarov was brought on for Samir Nasri and took up his role as left wing-back with Pablo Zabaleta doing the same on the right flank. This left a back three of Nastasic, Kompany and Gael Clichy. The impact of the switch was felt almost immediately as Dortmund opened up the City defence just minutes later, with Marco Reus finally beating Hart with a powerful effort. Its fair to say the German side had created many chances prior to the change in formation but surely playing with fewer defenders was not the answer. If City are to replicate their defensive stability of last year Mancini must surely settle on his best back four and stick with it.
3. Yaya Toure Is Irreplaceable
The driving force behind most of Manchester Citys moves over the past couple of seasons had an uncharacteristically poor performance against the German champions. Toure was sloppy in possession, getting dispossessed and misplacing passes for much of the night. His frustration was clear to see and culminated in a late booking for dissent. Every player is allowed an off night, though, and Toures performance wasnt the only reason the Manchester club played second fiddle to their German counterparts for the majority of the match. The real issue was that none of Citys other players stood up to the plate. There have been so many occasions in the last year or so when Man City have been involved in tight games where theyve not performed and Toure has galvanised them with a driving run through the centre of the pitch that has brought a goal for himself or a teammate. With Toure not at his best against Dortmund, no other player seemed prepared to take the game by the scruff of the neck. Sergio Aguero looked bright throughout but was unable to influence the game significantly from such a forward position. David Silva started well but soon faded, Samir Nasri was barely noticeable and Jack Rodwell, who replaced Javi Garcia, though talented, is inexperienced at this level and was at fault for the Dortmund goal. It was a night that could have done with the tenacious attitude of Carlos Tevez who remained an unused substitute. Fortunately for Mancini, Toure rarely has a bad game, but his sides lack of leadership and drive in the centre of the park with the Ivorian off colour will certainly give him something to think about.
4. Taking Chances Is Even More Important in Europe
This is a lesson that Borussia Dortmund should take heed of too if they are to progress in this competition, although both teams failings in front of goal were largely due to the two men between the sticks. Roman Weidenfeller looked unbeatable and was only overshadowed by Hart as he didnt have quite as many shots to contend with. However, there were a number of decent chances spurned by city, most notably from Aguero and Silva in the first half, and this is something that must change if the club want to become serious contenders in this competition. Had Joe Hart not been in such impervious form his side may have lost more than two points and could easily have suffered a heavy dent in their goal difference. The apparent lack of composure in front of goal for City is an issue that is magnified by the sides defensive frailties and it is essential that Mancini addresses at least one of these problems before they take on Ajax in their next Champions League game.
5. Mario Balotelli Still Does What He Wants
It has been a relatively quiet start to the campaign for the media magnet that is Mario Balotelli, by his standards at least, but the Italian showed his class with a coolly taken penalty that earned his side a point. Taking penalties at any time in a game can be nerve racking. Penalties to rescue a draw in the 90th minute tend to be much more so. Add to that the fact Balotelli had been on the field less than 10 minutes and has been far from a regular starter for his club this season and you have a pretty high pressure situation. Not only that but he was given the option of not taking it by Aguero who looked keen to shoulder the responsibility himself, until Balotelli waved him away. Then as he stood ready to place the ball on the spot the Dortmund keeper Weidenfeller had a few quiet words in his ear that presumably werent of an encouraging nature. None of this mattered to Super Mario though who jogged up to the ball, delayed his run up enough to see the keeper commit and rolled the ball into the opposite corner. 1-1. Naturally, he couldnt resist a retaliatory you talk too much hand gesture toward the German keeper, but on this occasion it was probably justified. Not that that would matter to Mario.