Lech Poznan 3 Manchester City 1:A rare start for Shay Given in the Manchester City goal was soured by two late goals as Lech Poznan condemned the faltering Premier League side to a third straight defeat and increased the pressure on manager Roberto Mancini.
With the scores locked at 1-1 following efforts from Dimitrije Injac and Emmanuel Adebayor, City’s Europa League Group A rivals struck twice in the last five minutes to take the points.
Dedryck Boyata headed against the unwitting Manuel Arboleda to make it 2-1 before Mateusz Mozdzen hit a screamer from the edge of the area to seal it in style.
With both Yaya and Kolo Toure left in Manchester and Carlos Tevez on his way back from Argentina, Mancini was forced to make changes. He embraced the idea, using the match to give the likes of Given, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Wayne Bridge and Joleon Lescott game time.
Mancini’s side should have been ahead inside 20 minutes, Patrick Vieira first missing from a tight angle then Adebayor seeing his close-range header nodded back off the line by Bartosz Bosacki. Seconds later Boyata spurned an even better chance, heading tamely into the ground from a couple of yards.
Poznan used the let-off as a spur to up their game. First Slawomir Peszko sent a free-kick skidding past the post before Stilic bent a first-time effort narrowly wide from the edge of the box.
By half an hour the Poles had a deserved lead. Vieira lost possession to Ivan Djurdjevic deep in the Poznan half, with the ball eventually finding Krivets on the left flank.
His cross was average but two ineffective defensive headers saw the ball fall to Injac, who beat Given from 25 yards.
Wright-Phillips paid the price for a poor 45 minutes and was replaced by David Silva at the interval. The Spain forward took up the space behind Adebayor, with James Milner moving to the wing.
It was Milner’s corner that created the equaliser after 50 minutes, Adebayor rising above his man to head powerfully at goal. Jasmin Buric pulled off a fine reaction save but was unfortunate to see his parry bounce to the Togolese striker, who belted home enthusiastically.
Poznan were visibly deflated by the goal but picked themselves up enough to give Marcin Kikut a half chance, though Pablo Zabaleta was on hand with a saving tackle.
Aleksandar Kolarov came on for City, his first appearance since injuring his ankle on his debut in August, but it was not to be a happy return. With five minutes left on the clock a hopeful ball into the away area was met by Boyata, but he only succeeded in heading the ball back off Arboleda.
The defender knew little about it but with Given stranded the ball nestled in the far corner.
Mozdzen, a substitute, scored a goal more fitting of the result in the final minute when he profited on Vincent Kompany’s error to beat Given with a rocket from outside the area.