Late present for City youngster

Manchester City defender Dedryck Boyata received the perfect compensation for missing a family Christmas when he was handed his senior debut at Middlesbrough.

The 19–year–old played a significant part in a third successive clean sheet as City edged their way past Coca–Cola Championship Boro and into the hat for the fourth round draw.

Belgian under–21 international Boyata said: “I was due to fly home on Christmas Eve, but then I was told I had to stay back to train, so I was a bit upset at first.

“But I have been training with some fantastic players every day since, and now to make my debut is a fantastic feeling.”

With Craig Bellamy, Carlos Tevez and Gareth Barry sitting on the bench, the visitors enjoyed the better of the first half and went close through Pablo Zabaleta and Martin Petrov.

It was Petrov who unlocked the door on the stroke of half–time, sliding Benjani in to beat keeper Danny Coyne from the edge of the area.

Boro responded gamely but never really threatened to trouble Shay Given in the City goal, and the Barclays Premier League side might have won more comfortably had Tevez, three times, Bellamy and Petrov made the most of second–half chances.