Stoke City gave their hopes of avoiding
relegation from the English Premier League a massive boost on Saturday when
they beat Manchester City 1-0 despite playing for almost an hour with only 10
men, dpa reported.
James Beattie headed the only goal of the game in the fifth minute of
first-half injury time to give Stoke victory and lift them out of the bottom
three.
Manchester City were given a one-man advantage when Rory Delap was sent off
on 38 minutes for a foul on Shaun Wright-Phillips and then kicking the ball at
the winger from point-blank range.
Wright-Phillips was lucky not to get at least a yellow card for a retaliatory
kick out at Delap, but Stoke scored against the run of play right on the
half-time whistle when Beattie scored a fine header at the far post.
Manchester City failed to make use of the advantage in the second half,
though, and Stoke held on for what could prove to be a crucial victory.
Later on Saturday, champions Manchester United, two points clear of Chelsea and Liverpool at the top, travel to Everton, while Aston Villa could go second if
they beat Wigan at Villa Park.
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