Roberto Mancini has issued a stern warning to his star players, to step up or face the axe as City continue to challenge Manchester United for the league title.
The Citizens are currently 15 points behind league leaders and bitter rivals Manchester United, however they do have a game in hand when they play Aston Villa on Monday. Roberto Mancini has urged his players to take responsibility and better their performances if they are to win any title this season.
Speaking in a press conference the City boss said:
"I don’t like players that never think it’s their fault. These players can’t play with me because this is impossible. I want strong players that are upset with me when they don’t play but, after that, show me on the pitch that they deserve to play”
Goalkeeper Joe Hart and midfielder Samir Nasri, were Mancini’s main targets for criticism.
Nasri who was signed from Premier League outfit Arsenal for a fees believed to be around 22 million pounds, has not shown the progress which was expected of him. The French midfielder has started only 14 games this season and has managed just a single goal.
Whereas Joe Hart’s development as one of the best goalkeeper’s in Europe was put to a halt, after making numerous mistakes which cost City important points. Mancini reiterated his trust in the abilities of both the players, but has urged them to put up better performances which they are capable of.
"I said that, for me, Samir is a top player and a top player should play well in every game. It's the same for Joe.
"Samir knows this because I have spoken about this situation many times with him. He can do better because he has quality, technique and he’s strong."
Mancini has been often accused of having poor man management skills, following his high profile rows with both Carlos Tevez as well as Mario Balotelli. However according to the Italian, his job requires him to be honest with his players, who he believes have recently lost the plot after an amazing title winning campaign last year.
"I’m not rude with my players," he said. "I say what I think sometimes and if I think it could be good for my players to understand they could play better or they can do more.”
"Sometimes we haven’t played with the same attitude that we had last year. When you win, like last year, it’s easy. When you have a problem, you should resolve that problem."
Mancini’s confrontational man management style has resulted, with him falling out with a number of his players and it will be interesting to see how both Nasri and Joe Hart react, being openly criticised by their manager.
