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In desperate act to save his team, Roberto Mancini has promised to rip his team apart ahead of the weekend clash with Leeds in the fifth round FA Cup tie. Joe Hart, Edin Dzeko, Gareth Barry and Samir Nasri are the players who are most likely to be targeted by the Italian.
Mancini has agreed to be harshly critical of his performance as well after his side lost to Southampton 3-1 at the St. Mary’s. The City team stayed in the St. Mary’s locker room for about an hour to discuss their performance, and then were addressed by Mancini. The players emerged upset and even refused to even give interviews, leaving Roberto Mancini to express his disappointment in his team’s worst performance in his three year reign with the club.
Mancini warned his players saying that he will make a point to accept below-par performances from time to time, as it is nothing new in football. But he made it clear that he will not tolerate ‘lack-of-heart’ and combativeness, which was evident during their match against Southampton.
In a recent interview, Mancini said “I am sure we will change that, because I will change players next week, I only want players who are ready for the fight in the last 12 games. I am very angry with a lot of my players, and very disappointed at the performance, because it is impossible to play the way we did.”
He went on to say “We didn’t fight for every ball. We can’t always win by playing well – that is normal. Sometimes we play well and win, but you also need to be able to win because you fight for every ball, and fight against an opponent who also wants to win the game. Every team that plays against us treats it like a Champions League final, but we should know this, it is normal.”
With just 12 games remaining in the Premier League, Mancini has agreed that the title race is now as good as over. Many wonder what effect the team’s recent performance and the losing out in the title race would have on the club’s management. Mancini will now have to focus on the ongoing FA Cup competition.
Source- Manchester Evening News
