Brum 2, CITY 2

It started all so brightly for Manchester City this evening as they traveled to St Andrews to face Birmingham. A win would have seen them keep the pressure up on their cross town rivals and of course Arsenal, who currently occupy second place. The visitors were quick out the blocks and when Silva and Tevez combined easily to score after only four minutes after Dzeko had gone close only seconds earlier the traveling supporters must have thought they would be cruising.
However that was not to be and at the midway point of the first half Birmingham grabbed the equalizer. To be fair, City have struggled all season with set plays and so was to be the case again. As David Bentley fired in a low free kick it missed everyone and into the net under an unsighted Joe Hart. Zigic was the nearest Birmingham player to the ball and he ran away with his arm held aloft, claiming the goal.
It is fair to say that possibly the biggest blow to City came when Micah Richards launched himself at the ball to head it away from goal only to come down hard and painfully on another City player and possibly the hardest head in the City team, Nigel DeJong. Seven minutes elapsed while Richards was getting treatment and after applying an oxygen mask and players help to lift him on the stretcher he was taken away and as this goes to press is in a Birmingham hospital, condition not made public.
That may have been the rallying cry that City needed to jump back into life and when Dzeko was fouled just outside the area it was Kolorov who pushed Tevez aside and let fly with a stunning left foot shot which bulged the back of Fosters net. It was no more than City had deserved and they went in at half time with the lead.
It seems though when City take the lead the stars and flair players of the team go into their shells a little, only Tevez really still showing the occasional determination. City did however have their chances before Birmingham equalized for the second and final time. First Tevez was denied an almost carbon copy of his first goal when again he and Silva combined. This time Foster stood up and the shot hit Foster rather than the net. Later City had a penalty turned down after Carr handballed in the area. The City reaction was that it was a certain penalty but the referee didn’t give it. It would only be seconds later when Kevin Phillips, recently subbed on would get involved with a clumsy Vieira and this time the referee, Mr Friend did point to the spot and Gardner duly dispatched the shot. The last kick of the game saw Kolorov attempt another free kick from almost an identical spot but this time it went only a fraction the wrong side of the post.
All in all City threw away two points here tonight and if we do not tighten up our defending from set plays and stop pushing when we go a goal up then we can kiss the top four position goodbye, never mind talk of titles.