Since leaving Manchester City and returning to Santos, it's all gone rather well for Robinho. He's got to hold hands with Pele. He's scored a late - and pretty damn decent - winner on his debut against rivals Sao Paulo. And he's taken the chance to have a pop at Roberto Mancini, and everyone else involved in European football while he's at it, for sending him onto pitches "just to run".

It's not been so glittery for City, though. Since their record signing left, City have been denied an appearance in their first major final since 1976 by neighbours United; laboured to a win against bottom-of-the-table Portsmouth; and lost at Hull City. Lost. At Hull City.

So, mixed fortunes, then. Gary Megson's leaving of Bolton, however, has led to benefits right across the board. It's been unexpectedly great news for:
1. Bolton's entire fanbase,
2. Brian Laws, and
3. The roses in Megson's garden.
Nobody's yet ascertained exactly what Owen Coyle is getting from all of this.

The start of a match City should really win if they want people to take this fourth-place bid seriously again: 7.45pm.

Patrick Vieira starts! But it's not all walking: Given, Zabaleta, Toure, Kompany, Bridge, De Jong, Vieira, Barry, Adam Johnson, Tevez, Adebayor.
Subs: Taylor, Onuoha, Ireland, Wright-Phillips, Sylvinho, Petrov, Lescott.

Jack Wilshere starts! Jaaskelainen, Steinsson, Knight, Ricketts, Robinson, Kevin Davies, Cohen, Muamba, Wilshere, Lee, Elmander.
Subs: Al Habsi, Samuel, Taylor, Gardner, Mark Davies, Basham, Andrew O'Brien.

Referee: Michael Jones (Cheshire)

Obligatory Edison Arantes do Nascimento / sildenafil citrate reference: "Not sure what that is in Robinho's left hand," begins the obligatory Gary Naylor reference, "but if Pele has given him a free sample of those pills he shills, no wonder Robinho looks so smug." And no wonder he's complaining about having to run about.

AND WE'RE OFF!!! City pass it around awhile. Pass pass passity pass. Here, is there anything we can do about those Betfair adverts? "I dunt gah nahwhere norf of ver Watford Gap innit." It has to stop. We can't be allowed to continue suffering like this.

3 min: Bridge zips down the left and sends the ball into the centre, where the sprightly Vieira causes Jaaskelainen momentary bother. The ball's eventually hacked clear by Ricketts, but only to Johnson on the right-hand edge of the area. The City new boy's shot is weak and easily gathered by Bolton's keeper.

5 min: This is a really strong start by City. Bridge again scoots down the left. This time he slips Johnson into the area (behave) but the winger, free in space just to the left of goal, chooses to cut a ridiculous ball back to the edge of the area towards Tevez, cutting in from the right. The resulting curling effort is weak.

7 min: Bridge sends another ball in from the left. He's really up for this, by the looks of it. This time Adebayor attempts an overhead kick, but the shot flies well wide right.

9 min: Finally Bolton get out of their own half. Davies slips a ball down the inside-left channel for Lee, who is free in the area but can't control the pass. This is a lovely open start.

11 min: Bolton haven't come to sit back: Davies tries to feed Elmander in down the inside-right channel, and nearly sets his team-mate clear, but the ball unluckily pings off the back of the Swede's heel, and that is that.

14 min: Adebayor and Tevez exchange passes to advance on the Bolton box with speed. Tevez rolls the ball out left to Bridge, who from a not-particularly-tight angle sends a low shot on target but sees it deflected wide left of goal. There are three corners as a result of this; look at all the time we've wasted.

17 min: Davies leaps about 7,000 miles into the air to nod down a long ball sent straight down the middle. Elmander hares in, and sends a low shot fizzing just wide right of goal. Route one stuff, but somehow it looks less ugly with Owen Coyle instead of Gary Megson sitting in the dugout. Life can seem so unfair sometimes.

19 min: Well, this was wonderful football from Bolton. Ricketts strips Adebayor in the Bolton left-back position, then starts off a one-touch sequence up the left wing involving Elmander, Cohen, Wilshere and Davies. It's golden stuff, all deft flicks and backheels, but Wilshere's eventual cross from the left is headed clear by Kompany and the dream of Goal Of The Season dies suddenly. Bah, I was quite enjoying that.

23 min: Bolton are the better side now. City can't put more than two passes together, with the away side winning most of the balls in midfield. Lee, Cohen, Muamba and Wilshere are all over it.

27 min: Elmander is in acres down the left, but his attempt to stand the ball up to the back post for Davies sails into Given's midriff. That was hopeless. Given should be within his rights to get right up in Elmander's grille, giving it some Playground Air Wrist.

30 min: UTTERLY NEEDLESS PENALTY TO CITY!!! Johnson twists and turns down the right. He cuts into the area, reaches the last blades of grass on the pitch, and finding himself going nowhere is taken down by Robinson's outstreched leg. What a stupid challenge. A clear penalty.

31 min: GOAL!!! Manchester City 1-0 Bolton Wanderers. Jaaskelainen offers Tevez nearly all of the goal to aim at by standing almost by his left-hand post. The ruse nearly hits paydirt, as Tevez hits it straight down the middle - to where the keeper has scampered back across just before the ball was kicked. The ball hits the keeper's knee and pings into the bottom-right corner.

34 min: Bolton will be totally radged off at being behind. There really was no need for the penalty, plus they were hellishly unlucky with the kick itself. Lee steals the ball from Vieira on the edge of the City area, diddles around for a bit, but is eventually robbed by Toure. They're looking a tad frustrated.

35 min: Elmander chases down the inside-right channel and slides in on Given and Toure, who are closing in to try and gather the ball. The striker's challenge makes something happen, the ball breaking free, but as he follows it, Toure dives in front of him, causing the Bolton player to immediately clatter to the ground. That's surely a penalty - but instead City get the free kick, the referee presumably thinking Elmander has bundled Toure over. A poor show.

36 min: Wilshere digs a magnificent cross from tight by the left-hand corner flag, the ball being sent back to the edge of the area. Muamba looks for the top-left corner, and is nearly helped by a deflection, but Given parries round the post. Muamba is also on hand for another swipe after the resulting corner, but this one was risible.

38 min: Adebayor bumbles free down the inside right but drags a poor shot low and wide left.

42 min: All four of City's defenders take turns in ignoring a ball bouncing through their area from the right. Eventually Wilshere takes a swipe at goal, though there's no power in a poor shot.

45 min: Barry practically catches the ball on the edge of his own area, dead central. That's a free kick. This is a real chance for Bolton. "Is it me or does someone take aim at Robinho, firstly with a water bottle and then more gloriously, a big cardboard box?" asks James of the Robinho goal v Sao Paulo. Yes, the box is a nice touch, isn't it. "Beats a bottle of Magners, eh Craig?" Ah the gentle Manchester banter. Anyway, this free kick...

45 min +1: ... is laughably witless, Cohen kicking it straight into a solid wall. What a waste of a grand opportunity.

HALF TIME: Manchester City 1-0 Bolton Wanderers. And that's that for the half. City can count themselves fortunate to be in front. Bolton really should have been awarded a penalty: Toure's intervention on Elmander was the sort of move not witnessed by a paying audience in the UK since the death of music hall put paid to the tumbling acts.

And we're off again! Bolton lump it long: old habits die hard. But make no bones, in general they're already stroking it around in a much more aesthetically pleasing fashion than under... but let's not keep dragging poor Gary into it.

48 min: A poor pass from Bridge allows Elmander to scuttle down the right and reach the byline. He's got a chance to find Davies and Lee in the centre, but the cross is woeful, and easily mopped up by Kompany.

50 min: The game judders to a complete standstill. Knight and Toure are both down getting sore bits rubbed: Toure the knee, Knight his back. Nothing serious, that's Dr Murray's Magnificent Prognosis*.
[Legal disclaimer: Dr Murray is not THAT Dr Murray]

53 min: The ball hits some Bolton player or other's shoulder, or is it their top arm? Anyway, that's a free kick 30 yards out, dead centre. Tevez sends a curling, dipping shot towards the top-left corner. Jaaskelainen decides to leave the ball - and watches in impotent horror as it crashes off the crossbar. Luckily for the keeper, his piss-poor decision costs Bolton nothing, the ball pinging up into the air and out of play behind the goal.

55 min: Wilshere has been magnificent so far. He skates down the centre of the pitch, and nearly breaks into the area with a delicious attempt at a one-two with Cohen. The ball back is this far behind him, and the move peters out. But that's again good football by Bolton.

56 min: Lescott replaces Toure, whose knee may be more jiggered than Dr Murray's initial Magnificent prognosis suggested. Not that much more, though; it looks like a precautionary measure with the big defender walking off easily enough.

58 min: Wilshere's been impressive, but Johnson has too. Here he shimmies down the right, then sends a vicious inswinging cross to the far post; Tevez isn't far from converting it.

59 min: Six yards out, just to the right of goal, Given attempts to clip a loose ball over the onrushing Elmander's head. The insouciant effort is nearly rightly punished, the ball bouncing off Elmander's back and so nearly into the net. What the hell was he thinking about?

60 min: Knight fluffs an admittedly difficult diving header from a left-wing cross, eight yards out. To repeat: struggling Bolton are at least the equal of Champions League chasing City here, and very possibly a wee bit better.

63 min: Muamba is booked for hauling De Jong down on the right wing. From the resulting free kick, swung into the Bolton area from 40 yards out, Barry heads tamely over.

67 min: Davies swings the ball in from the right. The ball's heading for Given's arms, but Vieira decides to head out for a corner. It's so nearly costly, as from it Muamba hoofs a low, hard shot across the face of goal from the left, Cohen not quite managing to guide his backheel goalward. "Would you say that even the trainers look more proficient in their sore-bit-rubbing now that Good Sir Megson is gone?" asks Jason Graff. Yep, I would say they finish their motions with much more of a stylised flourish. I'd describe the denouement as joyous - happy, even - were it not for a dangerous linguistic precedent.

68 min: Wright Philips comes on to replace Bridge. Who hasn't quite had the Stamford Bridge Terry treatment, but gets a nice warm round of applause nonetheless.

71 min: After decent work from Wright Phillips and Zabaleta down the right, the ball's shuttled into the centre. Tevez slips the ball down the inside-left channel to Barry, who for a split second looks to be bursting clear on goal, but Knight slides in to concede a corner. From it: nothing.

73 min: GOAL!!! Manchester City 2-0 Bolton Wanderers. So simple, so sweet. Vieira, just to the right of the centre circle, pings a long ball down the inside-right channel. Adebayor springs the offside trap brilliantly - he's just onside. The big striker chests the ball down, and sweeps a powerful shot into the net in one continuous movement. What a stunning finish.

74 min: Mark Davies replaces Cohen. Seconds later, Robinson is booked for flipping Wright Philips into the air like an egg.

77 min: Bolton are trying to grab a goal back, but it's just allowing City to break again and again with dangerous intent. Adebayor nearly sets Johnson free 30 yards out, but the ball's bundled away from the winger by Steinsson.

78 min: Taylor comes on for the impressive Wilshere. His first act is to upend... eh... some City player out right, level with the edge of the area. During a melee after the free kick, Lescott looks to instigate a one-two and break past the final man. Such is the renewed confidence in City's ranks.

80 min: Lee zips clear of last man Barry. He's got to take a quick poke at the ball - Given is out off his line quickly - and can't get any height on the effort, the ball going straight down the keeper's throat.

82 min: Steinsson is kicked in the ankle just to the right of the City box, six yards from the byline. Taylor sends the free kick to the far post for Davies, who wins a corner. From that, Davies crashes a header goalwards - but it's high and wide. Bolton have kept on keepin' on, but you get the sense they know it's becoming futile.

84 min: A free kick for City, 25 yards out, just to the left of goal. Tevez takes, but City forget to put anyone in the box - absolutely no-one! - and the ball is easily headed clear by Ricketts. That was ludicrous!

85 min: The new boy Johnson is replaced by Sylvinho. A wild round of applause rings around Eastlands.

87 min: We're all done here.

88 min: Tum te tum.

89 min: Pom pom pom.

90 min: And now in French: bof.

90 min +1: There are going to be five more minutes of this. Elmander tries to poke in a long diagonal cross from the right while standing by the far post, but can only shank it wide.

90 min +3: Tevez fannies around for a bit across the face of the Bolton area. He goes nowhere. "As an Arsenal supporter I could never understand why Eboue (!!!) and Walcott have always been preferred to Wilshere in one of the two half-forward roles," writes David Hunt. "Any time I've seen him play he's been outstanding. His strong performance today seems to just re-inforce that view. Arsene just seems to be dedicated to getting things done in the most difficult way possible. He's even above playing with a keeper."

FULL TIME: Manchester City 2-0 Bolton Wanderers. Lee and Taylor combine down the right to set Steinsson free. His cross is right on Knight's head in the centre, but the defender heads miles over. That was a decent chance. And that's the last action of the game. Bolton were well beaten by the end, but it took until City's second for their spirit to break. And they didn't have the luck: I cannot believe Toure wasn't penalised for that slapstick move on Elmander in the first half. Anyway, City go fifth. And I just go.