City slide to a halt as Diamanti inspires Western win

City would come to rue these – and subsequent – misses.

Diamanti came into the fray, and it was not long before the mercurial Italian made a major impact, beginning the move that led to Western’s 61st-minute equaliser.

The former Italian international picked up the ball on the break, found Dylan Pierias on the right and the winger’s cross picked out Besart Berisha, who set up Wales to make it 1-1.

Four minutes later Western took the lead – and again Diamanti and Berisha were crucial to the move.

The former directed a raking pass out wide to the right to the accelerating Wales, who crossed to Berisha: he looked to have plenty of work to do with Nuno Reis marking tightly, but he controlled, swivelled and rifled past Glover in one movement.

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Noone almost levelled with a shot that took a deflection before Ryan Scott shovelled it to safety as City laid siege to the Western goal and such was their pressure it seemed certain they must score.

But Noone, with a mazy run, could not get his shot off in time and Rostyn Griffiths somehow contrived to put Nabbout’s cross wide from directly in front of goal with five minutes remaining, while Maclaren then flicked wide from just in front.

For Western, this was a massive win; for City it was one of those nights.