Portsmouth 0 - 1 City

• The key to success this season lies in conquering the battlefields of the bottom half. And now we're two for two. Today was an object lesson in how to win these sorts of matches; a real novelty from a City side. Everything that we failed to do in these games last year - and at Fratton Park in particular - we did today.
  

• For a start, we kept the ball. Portsmouth did a good imitation of Crystal Palace three days ago - pressing us hard with their three central midfielders (Michael Brown, Richard Hughes and Hayden Mullins.) But Gareth Barry and Stephen Ireland were unruffled throughout - Barry in particular was excellent - and our midfield managed to control the game in a way that they have not always done so far this season.

• Another sign of our improved maturity and solidity is our newfound proficiency from set pieces. In this fixture last season, Hermann Hreiðarsson was left unmarked from a corner at the Fratton End to head in and put Pompey 2-0 up. Today Emmanuel Adebayor headed home a Gareth Barry corner from the same end. Having barely scored from a corner for years we now have two in four days. In a defensive sense, too, we have improved in this area: Kolo Touré and Joleon Lescott never looked like letting Portsmouth in.

• Last season we were nowhere near dynamic enough in attack. Elano and Robinho, who started either side of Craig Bellamy, were pathetic in their inertia and ambivalence. But effort and running were enshrined in today's selection, with Robinho dropped and a front four of Craig Bellamy, Adebayor, Carlos Tévez and Shaun Wright-Phillips. The moves did not always click, but the work rate was unquestionable. They ran and ran and ran, tiring out the Portsmouth players and pinning back the potentially dangerous Nadir Belhadj and Anthony Vanden Borre at full back. The goals will come.

• We go into a thirteen day break now with a 100% record thus far. Our £50million strike force has not torn a team to pieces yet, and neither Robinho nor Stephen Ireland has yet recreated last season's form. But there's a lot to be optimistic about. The spine of the team is the strongest I have ever seen it: Shay Given has been excellent, both new centre halves look good, and Gareth Barry is the form central midfielder in the Premier League so far. And Wayne Bridge and Shaun Wright-Phillips both look better than they did last season. Some time in October we'll beat someone 5-0. But until then these ground out wins are joys in themselves.