Pearce pleased with victory
31 Oct 2006 - 07:49:33
Manchester City boss Stuart Pearce was a relieved man after seeing his side edge a 1-0 victory at home to Middlesbrough.
Richard Dunne's first-half goal proved decisive at Eastlands and lifted morale in the City camp after a run of poor results.
Pearce said: "We showed character like we did against West Ham earlier in the season.
"And it was only in the last 15 minutes that Middlesbrough put us under any pressure.
"After the 4-0 defeat at Wigan, it would have been easy to make excuses as we had 11 players missing that day.
"Since then five players have come out of the treatment room and Ben Thatcher was also back after his ban, and the return of those players made a difference.
"The more players we have available the better, as it puts pressure on others for places."