Record signing Robinho hadn't scored since the trip to Blackburn in December and the team had failed to win away from home since August and faced being eliminated from the UEFA Cup. Things were not looking good for the blues.
Four days following that defeat, City played Hamburg in the return leg and the chairman was rumoured to be watching to see if Hughes still had the support from the fans. What he also saw was a game which has been regarded as the performance of the season. Although they lost that game on aggregate, City had shown the supporters, and the chairman exactly what they could do. The question was, if they could play like that against Hamburg, why not do it regularly in the league?
The following game against West Brom showed much more of the character City fans wanted to see. Racing into a two goal lead, City fans expected a glut of goals against the struggling Baggies. However, the defensive frailties that have dogged the club all season resurfaced as West brom came back to level the game, but City never gave up and won the match 4-2.
Six days later, City visited an Everton side, fresh from an FA Cup semi final win against Manchester United, nicking a point at Stamford Bridge and aiming to displace Aston Villa in fifth. With only one away win all season, surely City would be beaten again.
But no, City again put in an exceptional performance to get only their second away win of the season with Robinho having a field day for the blues. Since the defeat to Hamburg, City have taken maximum points and if they beat Blackburn on Saturday and Fulham and West Ham both lose, City will leapfrog them both into seventh.
Just a few short weeks ago, the only way City would have been able to
re-enter the UEFA Cup was by winning it. Now, thanks to Hamburg, they might be able to go on and reclaim their European spot.