Emmanuel Adebayor inspires Manchester City against Lech Poznan
Manchester City went three points clear at the top of Group A of the Europa League on Thursday, 21 October, after overcoming Polish champions Lech Poznan 3–1.
The game saw Emmanuel Adebayor score his first goals of the season with a fine hat-trick at in front of the home fans.
Poznan replied to the striker's first-half brace soon after the interval when Joel Tshibamba pulled a goal back, but the Togolese added a third to put the game beyond doubt.
"We created a lot of chances and we won, which is the main thing. Adebayor played a great game," City's David Silva, who assisted two of the striker's goals, told UEFA.com after the game. "We know he's a great player and he helped us a lot; if he keeps it
going he will win us a lot of points. We can travel to Poland with less pressure now, but still wanting to win."
Adebayor makes City's chances count
Both sides went for broke from the start of the game, as Slawomir Peszko hit a shot over the bar for the visitors while City's Adam Johnson saw his effort fly wide.
City went ahead 13 minutes into the first half when Silva found Patrick Vieira in midfield and the Frenchman played in Adebayor. The striker's quick turn gave him space to finish as he entered the box, and the former Arsenal man made no mistake sending the
ball into the far corner of the goal.
Poznan's Jakub Wilk was picked out by Sergei Krivets on the edge of the box with 24 minutes played, but the midfielder's effort flew over the bar when he should have tested Joe Hart.
Moments later, Silva broke on the left wing to send an inch-perfect cross towards Adebayor, who rose high behind the Poznan back line and steered the header into the far corner beyond the reach of goalkeeper Jasmin Buric.
Tshibamba pulls one back
The home fans were unnerved by Poznan's start to the second half, as a scramble inside the City box led to a deflected shot reaching Tshibamba, who controlled well with one touch and fired home a volley from just outside the six-yard box.
But the home side's clinical attacking paid off once again in the 73rd minute when Silva, once again the creator, hit an early cross into the box towards Adebayor. City's number nine anticipated the cross and stormed into the box to finish first time beyond
Busic to seal the victory.
City, group leaders with seven points from three games, are trailed by Poznan in the standings, with the Poles on four points. Juventus are third with three points, while FC Salzburg have collected only one point so far.
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