SUNDERLAND // Roberto Mancini cut a frustrated if not furious figure as Manchester City's unbeaten start to the season came unstuck at the Stadium of Light against a Sunderland side who celebrated their first Premier League win of the campaign.
It is over a year since Sunderland last won a League match without Darren Bent scoring, and the England striker maintained that trend by converting a stoppage-time penalty after he was fouled by Micah Richards, the City right-back.
A measure of City's dominance over Sunderland was that the previous time they lost to them, nearly a decade ago, the Black Cats' chairman was spearheading the home side's attack.
Niall Quinn, of course, is a revered figure at both clubs, having plied his trade with City before moving to Wearside.
Yesterday, he witnessed a dramatic finish to a game City ought to have had sewn up by half time.
That they did not was due largely to an astonishing miss by Carlos Tevez, the captain, who somehow scooped the ball over an open goal from around 10 yards in the 16th minute, and the indefatigable defiance of Simon Mignolet, the Sunderland's goalkeeper.
The Belgian Under-21 international was inspired, producing an outstanding save 11 minutes from time to deny substitute Emmanuel Adebayor.
It was pure reaction as Mignolet, signed from Sint-Truiden for £1 million (Dh5.7m) this summer, turned away Adebayor's flick inside the six-yard box.
City's lavish spending has topped £300m after Mancini invested around £130m this summer.
Yet they are already five points behind Chelsea, the leaders, in the table, and Mancini admitted: "I think football is very strange.
"We played some fantastic football in the first half and we had three or four great chances, but if you don't score you can lose games like this.
"We had a chance with Carlos and we had other situations where we could have scored in the first-half.
"But you must play until the end. I want to speak to the players when they come back from the international break because, in the second half, it was too easy for Sunderland to play their football.
"I would prefer that we had seven points, but we have played only three games. It's important we understand why we lost this game.''
For Steve Bruce, the Sunderland manager, victory was tainted by a suspected knee-ligament injury to Fraizer Campbell.
Bruce, who is interested in Asamoah Gyan, Rennes' Ghanian striker, will seek an urgent replacement for Campbell before the transfer window closes tomorrow.
Bruce said: "I'm delighted, it was a great performance from us. We rode our luck with the Tevez miss: I don't think he'll miss a chance like that again. We also needed the keeper to produce a fantastic save.
"But it looks as if Fraizer has damaged knee ligaments. With that, it's imperative we try to bring a body in because we're short there.''
Bruce said of City: "They will be there or thereabouts, but there are some good teams in the Premier League and they found that out here.''
Mancini, meanwhile, confirmed that forwards Robinho and Roque Santa Cruz could leave City before the transfer deadline, but that he wants to hold on to Shay Given, the goalkeeper who has been linked with Fulham.
He said: "I would prefer Shay to stay, but I spoke with Roque and he has two or three situations, and Robinho is the same.
" We have offers for Roque and Robinho, but I don't know whether they will remain with me.''
sports@thenational.ae
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The biog:
Favourite book: The Leader Who Had No Title by Robin Sharma
Pet Peeve: Racism
Proudest moment: Graduating from Sorbonne
What puts her off: Dishonesty in all its forms
Happiest period in her life: The beginning of her 30s
Favourite movie: "I have two. The Pursuit of Happiness and Homeless to Harvard"
Role model: Everyone. A child can be my role model
Slogan: The queen of peace, love and positive energy
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COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Sebastian Stefan, Sebastian Morar and Claudia Pacurar
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2014
Number of employees: 36
Sector: Logistics
Raised: $2.5 million
Investors: DP World, Prime Venture Partners and family offices in Saudi Arabia and the UAE
The Perfect Couple
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Liev Schreiber, Jack Reynor
Creator: Jenna Lamia
Rating: 3/5
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Where to donate in the UAE
The Emirates Charity Portal
You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.
The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments
The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.
Al Noor Special Needs Centre
You can donate online or order Smiles n’ Stuff products handcrafted by Al Noor students. The centre publishes a wish list of extras needed, starting at Dh500.
Beit Al Khair Society
Beit Al Khair Society has the motto “From – and to – the UAE,” with donations going towards the neediest in the country. Its website has a list of physical donation sites, but people can also contribute money by SMS, bank transfer and through the hotline 800-22554.
Dar Al Ber Society
Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.
Dubai Cares
Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.
Emirates Airline Foundation
Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.
Emirates Red Crescent
On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.
Gulf for Good
Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.
Noor Dubai Foundation
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).
England squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady, Marc Guehi, Reece James, Harry Maguire, Tyrone Mings, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Ben White
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Conor Gallagher, Mason Mount, Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, James Ward-Prowse
Forwards: Tammy Abraham, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe, Raheem Sterling
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