Source: Team_Talk
Di Matteo piles pressure on Mancini
West Brom head coach Roberto Di Matteo has piled more pressure upon Roberto Mancini, saying Manchester City "have to win" on Sunday.[LNB] After a great start to the season the Baggies sit just two points behind their big-spending opponents in the Premier League, despite having a fraction of their budget.[LNB]Meanwhile, Mancini's team have lost their last three matches.[LNB]Nevertheless, Di Matteo does not believe his side will be favourites on Sunday.[LNB]When asked that question, he replied: "Are you joking?[LNB]"I think City have to win, and we would like to win. I think that's the situation.[LNB]"They are the favourites, and we would just like to continue to play the way we've been playing and be competitive. That's our ambition."[LNB]Di Matteo added that self-belief will not be an issue for his team, even though they could be without several key players due to injuries and suspension.[LNB]He said: "I think we've been playing with confidence for a while now, but we're going to have a few players out.[LNB]"We'll have to shuffle the team around a little bit, but I've been pleased with the way we've approached every game since the opening match."[LNB]Despite City's recent poor run of results, Di Matteo says they should not be ruled out of the title race.[LNB]"Every team is going to lose a game or two during a long season," he said.[LNB]"But you look at their squad and the players they have in the squad, it's quite impressive in my opinion."[LNB]Midfielder Jerome Thomas echoed his manager's sentiments.[LNB]"I think with the squad they have got they have to be challengers," he said.[LNB]"With their spending power, I'm sure they'll bring in some new faces in January as well.[LNB]"I don't think you can write them off yet."[LNB]Thomas added that his team's tough start to the season has conditioned the players for big matches such as the one on Sunday.[LNB]He said: "We're ready to play any team at any point after we had those big away games at the start of the season.[LNB]"Especially with them coming to our ground, where we've been performing well, we're hoping for another good display."[LNB]
