Manchester City Post Edin Dzeko Lacking Late Game Heroics

Almost nine months ago when Wilfried Bony was bought from Swansea City, I expressed my concerns about purchasing the player. My thinking was not fully articulated in the short space of that World Soccer Talk piece - I feared Edin Dzeko would eventually be sold and like so many other players to moves from the Swans to bigger Premier League sides (like Joe Allen, Fabio Borini and of course Scott Sinclair) Bony would not be able to acclimate quickly.

Unfortunately, I was correct and what  potentially makes matters worse is that Bony now seems to be picking up an injury record similar to Sergio Aguero. This season, with one exception Aguero had generally been healthy, but has seen a dip in form. Guess what? That dip is not uncommon, but in the past the Blues had Dzeko to spell Aguero late in matches or even to start in a pinch.

But since this season, Dzeko is strutting his stuff at AS Roma who are sniffing the possibility of winning Serie A thanks to Juventus' decline (which would interestingly give Dzeko a title in a third major European league) the Blues seem to be bereft of late game striking options on the bench that can turn a game. Bony when fit has shown a willingness to run and hold up play, but seems to lack the poachers instinct for goal that is needed at this level in tight game. Kelechi Iheanacho showed that quality in scoring the winning goal at Selhurst Park against Crystal Palace, but still he is only 18 years-old and cannot be counted on regularly in similar circumstances.

Unfortunately this leaves the Blues without the type of options that can impact a match late on, like each of the three games the club has dropped in the last two weeks.