Roberto Mancini: December will be the deciding month
Roberto Mancini has spoken about the importance of December to Manchester City.
The Italian manager has been under pressure by the Arab club-owners to do well in the English Premier League. Mancini failed to secure City’s qualification in the UEFA Champions League, after his side could not manage a ‘top 4’
position in the Premier League last season.
However, the manager stressed that the upcoming fixtures in the league will have a huge impact on what position the club finishes, at the end of the season in May.
City will be involved in 5 Premier League matches during the Christmas month. The fixtures will see City host Bolton Wanderers, Everton FC and Aston Villa FC at the City of Manchester Stadium. While on the road, Mancini’s men will
travel to London to face West Ham United before their trip to St. James’ Park.
Roberto said, “This month will be very important for us as we have some difficult games against strong teams. During this spell we can understand what we must do for the future. It will be very tough because we play every three
days. But first we must try to beat Salzburg and go through to the next stage. Then we play just two games in February. That will give us time to concentrate on the league and that could be an important month too.”
Manchester City saw their victory snatched right out of their teeth by Stoke City when Matthew Etherington struck the equalizer in the dying moments of the game.
Meanwhile, the manager was not happy on the fitness level of left-back Wayne Bridge. The former Chelsea man has not been performing well since his move to the Eastlands, and has only played 2 games for the Citizens this season.
Mancini, while speaking about the player’s condition said, “He is available to play. The problem he has is he is always injured. Every game he plays he cannot finish. It is usually a hamstring or a groin problem. He played in Salzburg
but after 70 minutes he was injured. He is an important part of our group and he has been unlucky. We will change some players for Wednesday as we are playing two games in a few days but it will still be a good team.”
City’s next match is on Thursday night against FC Salzburg in the UEFA Europa League. The former FC Internazionale manager will be looking to grab 3 points in the match, in order to secure qualification for the next round of the
competition.
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