Manchester City prevailed 4-3 on penalties and continued further at the expense of Aalborg, booking their position in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup after a dreadful team display and tactics. Intending to defend their 2-0 advantage from the first leg in England, City offered next to nothing for more than 70 minutes of play, before eventually realising they needed to fight for this match if they were to advance.

Keeper Shay Given was City's hero as he saved from Thomas Augustinussen and Luton Shelton in the shoot-out, and City have only themselves to blame that it got to a penalty shootout in the first place. Having rescued their season, Shay Given  who joined in the transfer window from Newcastle, could not be blamed for the goals conceded in play time, but performed true heroics in the Russian roulette.

Mark Hughes can blame himself for choosing the inept tactics, and blame also goes to his team who were lacklustre for most of the match, throwing away the two-goal first leg advantage in the final eight minutes of regular time. 

The manager said he was furious with his team for the safety-approach, but really he ought to be angry at himself after his safety-first policy was torched when Shelton and Michael Jakobsen’s penalty drew Aalborg level at 2-2 on aggregate, and suddenly it was all back to square one.

Not surprisingly, after the match hero Given admitted to television cameras that City are lucky to be in the draw at all.

For over 75 minutes, City had protected their advantage from the first leg with the minimum of effort, hardly bothering to mount an attack against the Danes.

Shelton had lashed in an 84th-minute shot just after a Robinho strike had blasted the woodwork  at the other end, giving the Danish side that glimpse of hope for a fightback. The Sheiks boys seem to have self-destructive tendencies, it has occurred on previous occasions,and it was their arrogance that cost them so dearly on Thursday night yet again.

To make matters worse for City, Michael Jakobsen powered in a penalty after a Ched Evans handball to level the tie 2-2 before City's dramatic win.

Augustinussen was the first to make a blunder in the penalty shoot-out as Given dived low to his right to save. City had converted each of their penalties and emerged winners after Given also blocked a poor Shelton spot-kick