Manchester City Football Club News

• Nickname:Sky Blues
• Founded:1887
• Manager:Roberto Mancini

• Ground:City of Manchester Stadium
• Capacity:48,000

Citizens retain Hughes faith

05 Jan 2009 - 08:29:13

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Manchester City chief executive Garry Cook has given his backing to manager Mark Hughes following Saturday's shock FA Cup exit at the hands of Nottingham Forest.

Hughes' future at Eastlands was brought into question after the side he has led to a disappointing 13th place in the Premier League table this season were dumped out of the cup at the first hurdle.

The former Blackburn Rovers and Wales boss has been backed by the club's Abu Dhabi-based owners despite their struggles this season and has already been handed funds in the transfer window to significantly strengthen his squad.

But now Cook has lent his support to Hughes in the aftermath of Saturday's below-par display against a side struggling towards the foot of the Championship.

"Mark is part of building the club, from the playing side right through to making this a great place for employees," Cook told The Sun.

"What we don't do is sit around worrying about what happens if it goes wrong.

"Mark has played and managed at the highest level and knows what success looks like.

"He and I talk about that success all the time and we are not standing there thinking about 'what if'.

"We are thinking about when we become successful and how that'll look."

Hughes has already signed England left-back Wayne Bridge from Chelsea this month and Cook has backed his manager's judgement in the transfer window.

He added: "Once we get through the first window, when Mark's impact will be able to advance the future of the football club, things will start to settle down.

"Mark's plans and the way he is running the team are going to build and change and the confidence will start to build.

"We will bring people here who want to see the club move forward and the fans will ideally take to them because they're committed to the club."