Mancini concedes defeat in title race
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E-mail Shanghai Daily, March 29, 2013
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Mancini has finally admitted that his team's defence of their Premier League title is over. |
Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini yesterday threw in the towel for his club's English Premier League title challenge, saying the motivation for the rest of the season was to keep the clubs below it at a safe distance.
Defeat to Everton in its last Premier League outing left City trailing Manchester United by 15 points with nine games left.
United has shown no signs of wilting under the pressure of wresting the English title back from its near neighbor and has won its last six league matches.
"It's over but this doesn't change anything because we should do our best from now to the end," Mancini told reporters. "Every top team, when they can't win a title, should still try to play well and win all their games."
Mancini made the same assessment last season when City trailed United by eight points with six games to go before it rallied to snatch the title on the final day on goal difference.
"This is different (to last season)," Mancini added. "I don't know how we will finish this season, because we have Chelsea four points behind us and Tottenham five points behind.
"We have nine games left and for this reason it's important we keep working hard and well."
A seemingly crucial part of City's decline in recent weeks has been the absence of captain and defender Vincent Kompany who has been out with a calf injury since January 26. In that period, City has dropped 10 points, losing twice and drawing twice.
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