Manchester City made the best of difficult conditions to keep the pressure on Manchester United when they visit Chelsea on Sunday afternoon, brushing off a negligible Fulham challenge to win by three goals and put the same number of points between themselves and their neighbours.<br /><br />It was not a vintage display but it was never going to be, given the wintry weather. City simply needed a convincing win to put their recent setbacks behind them and they easily accomplished that. They might have won by four goals but for a weak finish by Micah Richards late in the game, but the way the City captain muscled an uninterested Mousa Dembélé off the ball before setting off on a determined solo run neatly encapsulated the difference in attitudes between the two sides.<br /><br />"We needed to win quickly after the Everton defeat, and keeping a clean sheet was important," Roberto Mancini said. "Maybe we had some luck, but you need luck. If you are not lucky it is better to stay at home."<br /><br />Martin Jol was less inclined to believe in good fortune. "We conceded a soft penalty and an own goal," the Fulham manager said. "That's always going to make it hard away from home against a quality team."<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Tags:<br />"martin Jol" "Roberto mancini" "etihad stadium" epl "barclays premier league" "Manchester City F.C." League Football Champions Soccer Goal Highlights Goals sports "Association Football" Sport
