West Brom vs. Manchester City: Score, Grades and Reaction to EPL Game

Manchester City rode a dominant showing in the first half to a 3-1 win over West Bromwich Albion on Friday, with heavy snow plaguing their Boxing Day fixture at the Hawthorns.

The visitors were once again forced to start the match without a natural striker, playing James Milner up front.

The unorthodox formation seemed to work quite well, however, and the England international nearly opened the scoring after six minutes, forcing Ben Foster into a diving save. The goalkeeper completely mishandled the resulting corner, and Fernando hooked the ball into the net from inside the six-yard box to give the Citizens an early lead.

The Birmingham Mail's Bill Howell put the blame for the goal squarely on the stopper:

Things went from bad to worse for the hosts, who conceded a penalty just minutes later. David Silva pounced on a loose ball and was brought down by Joleon Lescott, and the official had no choice but to put the ball on the spot.

Yaya Toure stepped up and converted in the driving rain, as The Telegraph's Jonathan Liew felt bad for the home fans:

Saido Berahino had the first real chance for the hosts in the 18th minute, flashing a shot just wide of the post after making a smart diagonal run. The hosts responded well to the early two-goal deficit, but with the rain making the pitch hard to play on, City had little difficulty defending their lead.

The defending champions played the counter-attack well and added a third goal to their tally. Jesus Navas found Silva with acres of space inside the box, and the Spain international had time to take a touch before slotting home. Lescott was again to blame for the goal, playing a horrid pass that set up the counter.

The Daily Mirror's Oliver Holt was impressed with what he was seeing from City:

Craig Gardner nearly pulled one back for West Brom, but Joe Hart produced a fantastic save to preserve the 3-0 scoreline heading into half-time.

The weather intensified during the break, with heavy snow greeting the players at the start of the second half. The Times' Rory Smith shared this image of the playing conditions:

According to Holt, just one Citizen braved the snow without gloves:

The heavy snow made fluid interplay virtually impossible, and the visitors were happy to just sit back and let the ball come to them, nursing their three-goal lead.

James Morrison did well to test Hart from distance, while a deflected effort from Samir Nasri nearly made it 4-0 on the other side of the pitch. Manuel Pellegrini decided to introduce a number of fresh legs, and without Silva and Toure on the pitch, the visitors no longer displayed the same creativity moving forward. The introduction of Frank Lampard gave City some extra physicality in front of goal, however, via Smith:

West Brom continued to pile on the pressure in search of a consolation goal, and Hart finally relented with three minutes left on the clock when Brown Ideye converted from a corner kick.

A late push for a second yielded no results, and the players appeared more than happy when the official blew the final whistle, bringing their afternoon in the snow to an end.

Notable Player Grades

Scott Heavey/Getty Images

David Silva: A

Silva's proficiency playing in a system without a striker continues to show, as the Spain international once again put together a fantastic performance. His distribution and darting runs were pivotal for the Citizens, and his constant pressure on Lescott resulted in two direct goals.

James Milner: B

Navas and Toure both deserve a special mention, but Milner's work rate and willingness to battle in a role he's unfamiliar with has to be commended even more. The England international may not be scoring, but he's doing all of the little things City need to win right now.

Saido Berahino: B-

The youngster's hot start to the season is officially over, having failed to score a single goal in 10 straight fixtures. Berahino had a solid, hardworking outing on Friday, but the 21-year-old will have to regain his scoring touch to warrant the hype surrounding him heading into the January transfer window.

Post-Match Reaction

Holt thought it was a routine win for the defending champions:

As shared by Smith, Milner was undaunted by the low temperatures and pouring snow:

Yaya Toure took to Twitter to thank the fans who braved the cold:

Manuel Pellegrini told reporters he believes city-rivals Manchester United are still viable title-competitors after their big win on Boxing Day, per the Premier League's official Twitter feed:

Post-Match Outlook

City needed to win to keep pace with Premier League leaders Chelsea heading into the final match of 2014 and did just that. Playing in difficult conditions at the Hawthorns is never easy, and these are three points that could play a huge part at the end of the season.

West Brom continue to sink to the relegation zone, and while no one demanded a win over the defending champions, 2015 will have to see some changes if the Baggies want to avoid a big fight in the final weeks of the campaign.

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