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Football: Carroll's double hits Manchester City's Champions League hopes

Record signing Andy Carroll delivered a blow to Manchester City's Champions League ambitions as Liverpool cruised to a 3-0 victory over Roberto Mancini's side at Anfield on Monday.

Carroll helped himself to his first two goals in a Liverpool shirt since joining from Newcastle for 35 million pounds in the January transfer window.

Dirk Kuyt also netted on a torrid night for City, who lost captain Carlos Tevez to a suspected hamstring injury ahead of Saturday's FA Cup semi-final with neighbours Manchester United at Wembley.

Mancini's expensively-assembled side has now failed
to win any of their last six Premier League away games and remain fourth in the table.

The Italian is under pressure to qualify for next season's Champions League. 

But City are only three points ahead of fifth-placed Tottenham, who they entertain on May 10, while their London rivals also have a game in hand as the season reaches a thrilling climax.

It was hard to believe judging by their first half performance, but City had arrived at Anfield boasting more clean sheets than any other team in the Premier League. 

Yet hopes of a 15th were undone by a shambolic first half defensive display as Liverpool laid the foundations for a seventh win in 12 league matches under Kenny Dalglish with a dominant first-half display. 

Five-nil winners over Sunderland in their previous game, City were given a taste of their own medicine as they found themselves 3-0 down by half time.

City had already been handed a seventh minute warning of Liverpool's rampant mood by Luis Suarez, the Uruguay forward's powerful low shot striking the post after the faintest of touches by keeper Joe Hart. 

But Hart was unable to keep out England team-mate Carroll's majestic finish six minutes later. 

It came after Tevez had originally lost possession, Raul Meireles' ambitious long-range effort cannoning off Vincent Kompany straight to Carroll, whose left-foot 25-yard finish flew past Hart into the net. 

The joy on Carroll's face told its own story. Having arrived at Liverpool injured, the expensive signing has endured a long and frustrating battle to get fit. But this was pay back time.

A City victory would have taken them above Chelsea into third place and left confidence sky high ahead of next weekend's FA Cup semi-final.

09:29 | Labels: , , |

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