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Indyplus update: Premier League match reports

 

Sunday 25 August 2013 18:59 BST
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Famous victory for Cardiff as Fraizer Campbell scores late goals

Cardiff 3 Manchester City 2

Fraizer Campbell scored two late goals as Cardiff marked their first Premier League home game with a famous victory over Manchester City.

Edin Dzeko appeared to have put Manuel Pellegrini's side on course for the three points when his superb strike gave City the lead early in the second half.

But Cardiff hit back when Aron Gunnarsson tucked home from close range just before the hour, before Campbell twice headed home from corners to spark scenes of delirium at Cardiff City Stadium.

Alvaro Negredo got his first goal for City in stoppage time, but it was too little, too late.

Few had given last season's Championship winners any hope of getting a result after City had opened their campaign so impressively against Newcastle.

But Malky Mackay's men worked tirelessly to deny their big-spending visitors the space to work their magic and they ended the game as deserving winners.

Prior to kick-off a section of the Welsh club's fans had walked through the city to express opposition to the changing of the club's kit from blue to red but, come the final whistle, fans wearing both colours joined in euphoric celebrations.

For Pellegrini, there was a reminder that his will not be an easy task, and this poor display means they remain without a win from three Premier League visits to south Wales.

Indeed, they never allowed their visitors to settle, with Joleon Lescott and Javi Garcia showing particular discomfort against Campbell's pace.

Cardiff could have led after just 30 seconds. David Silva and Gael Clichy stood off Craig Bellamy and Lescott missed the Welshman's ball into the box.

It eventually fell to Campbell, who went down as Fernandinho closed in, but the appeals were waved away by Lee Probert.

Lescott was all at see again a few minutes later. The defender was robbed off possession by Gary Medel and then needlessly fouled Kim Bo-kyung to give Peter Whittingham a free-kick which he fired just wide.

Whittingham then picked out Steven Caulker from a set-piece to force Joe Hart into a save, although the flag was up for offside.

Cardiff's tigerish snapping and harrying meant City could not find their stride and it took 20 minutes for them to unlock the home defence, but Andrew Taylor was on hand to clear from Silva's astute ball across the six-yard box.

Dzeko should have given them the lead just before the half hour but failed to control Yaya Toure's excellent threaded pass.

David Marshall held an ambitious effort from Silva, before Ben Turner blocked brilliantly as Toure fired at goal as City steadily assumed control.

But Pellegrini's men should have trailed at the interval.

Campbell escaped the attentions of Garcia and Lescott far too easily from Gunnarsson's lofted pass, but could not get a shot away cleanly, and seconds later Garcia's woeful header forced Hart to intervene.

Cardiff looked as though they would rue those missed opportunities when City took the lead just six minutes into the second half.

Toure found Aguero and the Argentinian's lovely lay-off set-up Dzeko to blast a strike beyond Marshall's despairing dive.

Cardiff refused to crumble and hit back eight minutes later. Clichy gave Kim far too much room on the right of the area and, although Hart saved from Campbell, he could do little to prevent Gunnarsson firing home the rebound.

City pressed and pressed in an effort to restore their advantage but were met by stern resistance as Silva was crowded out before firing over, and Caulker blocked an Aguero strike.

The rearguard effort gained its reward with 11 minutes to go, Whittingham swung over a pinpoint corner and Campbell snuck away from Pablo Zabaleta at the far post to nod in.

The former Manchester United and Sunderland striker then completed the job with five minutes to go as he again escaped Zabaleta to find the net and write his name into Cardiff history.

Negredo pulled one back but it was not enough.

***

Bale suns himself in Spain as Soldado scores fourth goal in three games for Spurs

Tottenham 1 Swansea 0

Roberto Soldado took his tally to four goals in three games as Tottenham maintained their 100 per cent record with a narrow victory over Swansea.

The £26million record signing scored the winning goal from the penalty spot for the second week running.

Tottenham dominated the game, but a killer instinct was lacking at times and Michel Vorm also pulled off a couple of top saves in the Swansea goal.

That killer instinct, of course, would probably have been there had Gareth Bale been here, but the star forward was sunning himself in Marbella instead.

Without him, Tottenham were impressive, but only in patches.

Soldado took his spot-kick well while a pair of bruising performances from Etienne Capoue and Paulinho stifled Swansea's creativity.

Tottenham should have had the chance to bury the game in the first half but referee Neil Swarbrick failed to give what looked to be a clear penalty following a foul by Jonjo Shelvey on Andros Townsend.

Despite having to go through a 4,500-mile round trip to Georgia in midweek, Spurs pressed from the kick-off.

Swansea had little time on the ball, but the hosts had to resort to long-range shots as Ashley Williams kept Soldado quiet.

Paulinho drove in to Vorm's arms from long range and Capoue did the same from a similar angle.

Vorm looked on nervously as Nacer Chadli's wicked free-kick flew a foot over the bar and Spurs then almost grabbed the lead thanks to a mistake from Williams.

The Arsenal target rattled the frame of his own goal with a bullet header and Vorm did well to save the Paulinho's follow-up from close range.

Hugo Lloris had a quiet 25 minutes until the Spurs stopper was called in to action to save from Shelvey at the near post.

It was all Spurs from then on. Paulinho strode past his marker but fired a low shot wastefully wide.

Swansea could only clear Kyle Walker's cross as far as Mousa Dembele, but Vorm pulled off an impressive acrobatic save to deny the Belgian.

When Paulinho stabbed a volley inches wide of a half-open goal, Spurs fans groaned. It seemed nothing was going their way and that sense was only heightened when Swarbrick failed to award a penalty in the final minute of the first half.

Shelvey bodychecked Townsend inside the penalty area, but the referee, after consulting with his flagging assistant, gave a free-kick a yard outside the box instead.

One possibility was that the linesman had flagged for a nudge by Wayne Routledge on Townsend just before he entered the box.

Michael Dawson put in a crucial tackle to deny Michu after the break, but the home side were still well on top.

Townsend cracked a fizzing half-volley just over the bar soon after as Tottenham continued to lay siege to the Swansea box.

The pressure paid off as Tottenham won a penalty in controversial circumstances.

Townsend's trickery allowed him to enter the Swansea box and he fell to the floor after little, if any, contact from Shelvey.

Swarbrick paused before pointing to the spot and Soldado made no mistake, slotting the ball to Vorm's right-hand side to make it 1-0.

Swans boss Michael Laudrup brought on striker Wilfried Bony and the Swans came back in to the match briefly. Pablo Hernandez won a yard of space just outside the box after a weak header from Dawson, but his curling effort flew a yard wide.

Lloris then pulled off a stunning save to stop a powerful volley from Chico Flores.

Andre Villas-Boas brought Sandro on to shore up the Spurs midfield, while Soldado received a big round of applause as he departed for Jermain Defoe.

Paulinho had a chance to kill the game off in injury time, but he ploughed a shot over the bar after first drawing a good save from Vorm.

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