Carlos Tevez kept Manchester City's slim hopes of retaining the Premier League title alive as he earned Manchester City a 1-0 victory which left Aston Villa still rooted in the relegation zone on Monday.
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Tevez punished Ciaran Clark's calamitous mistake in first-half added time at Villa Park to enable second- placed City to move within 12 points of runaway leaders Manchester United.
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It was far from a vintage performance from Roberto Mancini's team, but the victory at least preserved their faint hopes of catching bitter rivals United.
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Mancini conceded it would be hard to catch United, but he insisted his team would keep pushing Alex Ferguson's men right until the end of the season.
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"We know it will be difficult but we will keep on trying. It was important to stay 12 points behind United and for us the championship is not over,"
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Mancini said. "We have to keep on winning and see. This is football, nothing is impossible.
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"We are playing well. We had good chances and Aston Villa are a good team. It is strange that they are down there and for that reason I am happy with my team."
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Villa, meanwhile, remain in 18th and were once again left to rue a costly lapse of concentration from one of their players at a key moment.
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Their forthcoming matches against fellow strugglers Reading and QPR now take on even further importance as Paul Lambert's team try to beat the drop.
Tevez is in form again. Good for him!