Manchester City coach David Platt admitted that their last-gasp 3-2 triumph over Tottenham at the Etihad Stadium was 'a huge victory'.
City coach welcomes vital success against title rivals Spurs
Manchester City coach David Platt admitted that their last-gasp 3-2 triumph over Tottenham at the Etihad Stadium was 'a huge victory'.
Mario Balotelli secured the success for the league leaders with his penalty in the fifth minute of stoppage time, picking himself up to calmly score from 12 yards after being brought down by Joleon Lescott.
The contest exploded into life after an uneventful first half, with four goals in the space of 10 minutes, with City carving out a 2-0 lead and then seeing it almost immediately wiped out.
Samir Nasri and Joleon Lescott were on target for the hosts, with Jermain Defoe and Gareth Bale responding for the visitors.
There was further drama with Balotelli fortunate to escape any sanction after appearing to catch the prone Scott Parker in the face with a flailing boot, while Defoe came within a whisker of adding a third for Spurs but could just not divert Bale's cross at the far post into the net.
Massive
Platt took over the post-match duties with Roberto Mancini having over-exerted his vocal chords during the clash, which saw City move eight points clear of their third-placed rivals.
He told
Sky Sports: "I think when you're at the top, what you've learned is that when you don't pick up maximum points people will close in on you.
"For us to have taken the three points is a massive thing, especially from 2-0 up and Spurs getting back into the game, and them almost winning it in the last minute.
"It's huge because it's against a team that are in the running for the title.
"So it's a huge victory, but the value is three points and we've just got to put it away and look for the next one."
