- 76'
The Italian is down after clashing wih Orr. I'm not sure how he has hurt himself.
- 75'
Corner to City, Orr getting in the way of Balotelli's header on goal.
- 74'
Can Blackburn grab a goal to make the last 15 minutes uncomfortable for City? The nuetral would hope so, but all the evidence on the pitch suggests they won't.
- 73'
A clever chip from Balotelli to try and set Aguero away, but Rovers are alert to the danger.
- 72'
Free-kick, Bradley Orr climbing over the back of Balotelli.
- 71'
City will not have collected an easier three points than this all season. Zero ambition from Blackburn.
- 70'
A chance for City fans to get another look at the midfielder who made a goalscoring debut against Porto in midweek.
- 69'
<img src="http://soccernet-assets.espn.go.com/design05/gp10/i/subs.gif"> <b>David Pizarro on for Adam Johnson</b>
- 68'
<img src="http://soccernet-assets.espn.go.com/design05/gp10/i/subs.gif"> <b>Ruben Rochina and Steven Nzonzi on for Radosav Petrovic and Mauro Formica</b>
- 66'
Silva and Johnson attempt a short corner, but it back fires when the former is caught offside.
- 65'
Steven Nzonzi is coming on for Blackburn. I'm not sure how that is going to change things, but at least Steve Kean is trying.
- 64'
The cross is flicked away by Blackburn for a City throw-in.
- 63'
Free kick to City, Balotelli shoved by Hoilett.
- 62'
Steve Kean is cutting a forlorn figure on the Blackburn bench. It's looking very bleak now.
- 60'
Both players are back on their feet and it looks like a potentially huge crisis for City has been avoided.
- 59'
And now Aguero is down after a hefty collision with Pedersen. Things have taken a nasty turn for City.
- 58'
Yaya Toure looks in trouble after stretching to try and cross. An injury to the Ivorian would dampen Roberto Mancini's mood.
- 57'
Like everything else Blackburn have done today, the corner offers no threat to the Man City goal.
- 56'
Determined work from Yakubu to earn a corner off Joleon Lescott...
- 55'
Looking on the Blackburn bench, there is very little in the way of attacking options.
- 54'
Kolarov involved again, lofting a ball forward which runs straight through to Robinson.
- 53'
Kolarov has been playing as a second left winger in this half, again his comes forward but his pass is just behind Silva.
- 51'
<img src="http://soccernet-assets.espn.go.com/design05/gp10/i/goal.gif"> <b>GOAL</b> <b>Aguero makes it 2-0!</b> A terrible, terrible error from Robinson. Under no pressure he fumbles the corner, and Aguero gladly hammers the ball into the empty net. Game over? Probably.
- 51'
<img src="http://soccernet-assets.espn.go.com/design05/gp10/i/yellow_card.jpg" height="15"> <b>Bradley Orr's</b> protests earn him a yellow card.
- 51'
Balotelli clutching his ankle at the moment, it doesn't look too serious.
- 50'
Another City corner, Adam Johnson's shot deflected behind...
- 49'
Good work from Aguero to find his way to the byline, his clipped cross is just too high for Balotelli.
- 48'
Kolarov successful in his attempts to get into the box this time, passing to Balotelli who twists and turns but can't get his shot off.
- 47'
The match has slipped back into the same pattern with City comfortably in possession.
- 46'
Kolarov straight on the front foot, seeing his run into the penalty area checked.
- 45'
<b>SECOND HALF</b>
- 45'
The teams are out for the second half. What can Blackburn do to turn this around?
- 45'
City are just 45 minutes away from opening up a five-point lead over Manchester United, who travel to Norwich tomorrow.
- 45'
Blackburn are yet to register an attempt on goal, with just one corner to show for their efforts so far.
- 45'
Blackburn's bench offers little hope for their fans, especially when compared to the riches City have in reserve.
- 45'
Blackburn have offered little. Rovers' only hope is that City become complacent and let them back in the game.
- 45'
<b>HALF TIME</b> Balotelli is back with a bang and Man City go in 1-0 up at the break. City's dominance has been total and Blackburn are lucky to only be one goal down.
- 45'
A defensive lapse from Scott Dann allows Aguero to latch onto a looping ball. From a tight angle he guides his shot just wide.
- 45'
Toure with two attempts in a matter of seconds. First, Kolarov lashed a volley across goal which Toure couldn't direct goalwards. Balotelli collected and set-up Toure to fire wide.
- 45'
<b>TWO MINUTES ADDED TIME</b>
- 44'
City enjoying plenty of time on the ball in midfield, with Blackburn happy to let them have it.
- 43'
The corner fulls for Aguero to volley, but the Argentine hoofs his effort miles over the bar.
- 42'
Olsson heads behind to give City a corner...
- 41'
Diligent defending from Hoilett to stop David Silva getting into the penalty area.
- 40'
A rare error from Silva, who mishits his cross from the byline.
- 39'
Balotelli pulling out to the left flank and trying to cut inside, but his progress is halted by the recovered Petrovic.
- 37'
Blackburn clinging on a bit at the moment. Can they make it to half-time?
- 36'
Yaya Toure should have made it 2-0. Robinson with a great save after Kompany's acrobatic flick. The ball falls to Toure, who prods his shot wide with the goal gaping.
- 35'
The corner is over hit, but City get a second chance...
- 34'
Blackburn need to show more ambition if they are to get anything from this game. Aguero earns a corner for City...
- 33'
David Silva's influence in the game is growing. The Spaniard with a mazy run and one-two with Kolarov before forcing Robinson into a smart stop.
- 30'
Blackburn appeal for a penalty, but their claims are waved away. De Jong bringing down Pedersen, but he did get the ball.
- 29'
<img src="http://soccernet-assets.espn.go.com/design05/gp10/i/goal.gif"> <b>GOAL</b> <b>Mario Balotelli opens the scoring!</b> Man City on the break, Silva feeding Kolarov who provides a perfect low cross for Balotelli to confidently convert at the near post.
- 27'
Petrovic is down holding his shoulder after a challenge from Aguero. This looks serious.
- 26'
Blackburn are really under the cosh at the minute, can they survive until half time?
- 25'
Robinson with another save, but once again Zabaleta collects. Again, his cross is headed clear.
- 24'
Junior Hoilett concedes a free-kick on the edge of the area...
- 23'
City go close, Johnson cutting inside and firing a shot at Robinson. He spills the shot, Zabaleta cuts the ball back into the danger area but no City player can collect.
- 22'
<img src="http://soccernet-assets.espn.go.com/design05/gp10/i/yellow_card.jpg" height="15"> <bGrant Hanley</b> becomes the first man into the book.
- 21'
The free kick breaks for Zabaleta, his teasing cross is agonisingly above Balotelli's head.
- 20'
Petrovic shoves Silva, free-kick.
- 19'
Yakubu with an awful pass back towards his own goal which Aguero gathers. He finds Balotelli, whose curling shot is blocked.
- 17'
Aguero is trying to make things happen for City, but his runs are not quite enough to create chances at the moment.
- 16'
After a shaky start, Blackburn seem to have settled into their task. City are still bossing possession, though.
- 15'
More neat play from Aguero and Adam Johnson, the former's cross is headed away at the near post.
- 14'
The initial cross is headed away, but De Jong's hook back in finds Toure who struggles to control the ball.
- 13'
Adam Johnson with a poor cross, but Hanley, under no pressure, heads behind for another City corner.
- 12'
Blackburn clear their lines, again De Jong stifles the attempted counter-attack.
- 11'
Balotelli tripped by Petrovic, City free kick near the corner flag...
- 10'
A terrible, terrible shot from Yaya Toure which spirals out for a Blackburn throw.
- 9'
City seeing an awful lot of possession, Blackburn struggling to get the ball.
- 8'
Blackburn clear and Nigel de Jong chases back to tackle Martin Olsson as he looks to break.
- 7'
City free kick, David Silva tugged back.
- 6'
Adam Johnson has seen a lot of the ball early on, but he wasted an opportunity there. Pablo Zabaleta had made an excellent over-lapping run, but Johnson held onto possession for too long and hit his pass out of play.
- 5'
Kolarov does well to head Pedersen's cross clear.
- 4'
Grant Hanley earns a corner, his half-volley deflected behind.
- 4'
A free-kick for Blackburn, their first chance...
- 3'
An air-shot from Olsson give Man City a throw-in, not a strong start from Blackburn.
- 2'
A really positive start from City, with Sergio Aguero attempting to burst through the centre of the Blackburn defence. He is eventually stopped.
- 1'
Mario Balotelli almost makes a stunning return! Excellent play from Adam Johnson, who cuts back for Balotelli. The Italian's first-time shot is brilliantly saved by Paul Robinson.
<b>KICK OFF</b>
The teams are out at the Etihad Stadium, can Blackburn cause a shock? They can climb out of the relegation zone with a win.
Can Blackburn repeat the heroics of their last trip to Manchester and that impressive 3-2 win at Old Trafford?
All the talk has been of returning strikers ahead of this game and Roberto Mancini does indeed recall Mario Balotelli.
<b>Blackburn team:</b> Robinson, Orr, Dann, Hanley, Martin Olsson Pedersen, Petrovic, Hoilett, Formica, Marcus Olsson, Yakubu.
<b>Man City team:</b> Hart, Zabaleta, Kompany (c), Lescott, Kolarov, de Jong, Yaya Toure, Johnson, Balotelli, Silva, Aguero. Subs: Pantilimon, Richards, Clichy, Milner, Nasri, Pizarro, Dzeko.
<i>ESPNsoccernet</i> will bring you live commentary of Blackburn's trip to Manchester City, which kicks off at 17.30 GMT.
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