Switched-off Man City stars upstaged by Brighton

LONDON: Manchester City boss Mark Hughes admitted his side had only themselves to blame for a humiliating League Cup exit at the hands of League One club Brighton.

The cash-strapped outfit from the third tier of English football triumphed 5-3 on penalties after matching City's millionaires over two hours at their Withdean stadium on Wednesday evening.

It was a sharp reminder for City, newly-rich following their takeover by the Abu Dhabi United Group, that money alone cannot buy success and Hughes confessed they would have to take the defeat on the chin.

City had appeared to be coasting to victory inside the 90 minutes after Swiss midfielder Gelson Fernandes' deflected shot put them ahead just after the hour mark.

But complacency crept in and sloppy defending ensured they were forced into extra-time when Glen Murray equalized in the final minute of regulation time.

"I thought we pretty much controlled the match but we switched off at the end. Unfortunately we switched off again in injury time, they scored again and it went to penalties, which are always a lottery.

"But we move on and good luck to Brighton. It is not something we can afford to dwell on. We have got games coming up thick and fast and we have got to pick ourselves up."

Joe Anyinsah put Brighton ahead five minutes into extra-time and it was not until eight minutes from the end of the second period that City midfielder Stephen Ireland forced the tie to penalties.

And when it came to the crunch, it was Brighton's unheralded stars who held their nerve, producing five textbook strikes while City defender Michael Ball saw his effort - City's fourth - saved by Michel Kuipers.

Elsewhere, Tottenham earned some breathing space for under-pressure boss Juande Ramos with a 2-1 win over Newcastle that sent the League Cup holders into the fourth round of the competition on Wednesday.

Goals from Russian striker Roman Paylyuchenko - his first for the club - and midfielder Jamie O'Hara, gave the club currently propping up the English Premier League their first domestic win of the season.

Michael Owen managed a consolation strike for Newcastle but, on the evidence of this supine display, the Magpies could find it harder to get out of the EPL's relegation zone than Tottenham will.

"Our situation was very similar to Newcastle's," admitted Ramos. "We have had a period without victories and the team was nervous. Things were not going very well, but this victory has given us some peace of mind."

Chelsea, the side beaten by Spurs in last year's final, marched into the fourth round with a convincing 4-0 win at Portsmouth in which Frank Lampard continued his superb early season form.

The midfielder has been outstanding for club and country since the uncertainty over his future was resolved before the start of this campaign and he capped another all-action display with two goals at Fratton Park, the first from the penalty spot.

Florent Malouda and Salomon Kalou were also on target for Luiz Felipe Scolari's near full-strength side, in which Didier Drogba made his first start of the season.

Championship side QPR produced a shock when they knocked out high-flying Aston Villa with a 1-0 win at Villa Park.

The most notable result since the west London club was taken over by Formula One tycoons Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone was secured by a Damion Stewart header just before the hour mark with Daniel Parejo - on loan from Real Madrid - the supplier of the cross.

Ipswich were made to pay for missing a string of first-half chances as they went down to a 4-1 defeat at home to Wigan.

Jonathan Walters canceled out Lee Cattermole's opener for Wigan but goals from Olivier Kapo, Paul Scharner and Henri Camara saw the Premier League outfit run out convincing winners.

AFP

(China Daily 09/26/2008 page22)