Pellegrini focused on Man City
MANCHESTER: Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini said he was only interested in his own team’s results after they maintained the pressure on Premier League leaders Chelsea by beating West Bromwich Albion.
Saturday’s 3-0 victory cut Chelsea’s lead to just three points, although the London club, who were due to visit Hull City overnight, have two games in hand over Pellegrini’s defending champions.
Despite a winning response to the midweek Champions League exit at Barcelona, Pellegrini is aware that the odds are heavily stacked against his side retaining the title they won dramatically 12 months ago.
“We’re not thinking about that,” said Pellegrini. “We have to play eight games more now and we can win the eight games and if Chelsea doesn’t drop points, we cannot win the title.
“The important thing is not to think about other teams, but to think about our team, improve, and win the next game, which is against Crystal Palace.
“Of course it’s always important to return to a victory after you have lost the last game. And we lost the last two games in different competitions, Wednesday in the Champions League and against Burnley in the Premier League. It was important to return to victory.”
Pellegrini said he would not even be watching Chelsea’s game at Hull, preferring instead to watch the meeting between Liverpool and Manchester United, whom City play next month.
Meanwhile referee Neil Swarbrick issued an apology on Saturday after mistakenly sending off West Bromwich Albion defender Gareth McAuley during their defeat at the Etihad Stadium.
West Brom’s Craig Dawson fouled City striker Wilfried Bony just outside the box in the second minute of the game at the Etihad Stadium, but Swarbrick showed a straight red card to an incredulous McAuley.
“In the second minute of Manchester City v West Bromwich Albion, referee Neil Swarbrick made a decision to send off Gareth McAuley for a ‘denial of an obvious goalscoring opportunity’ offence,” Professional Game Match Officials Ltd, the body responsible for Premier League referees, said in a statement.
“The referee has confirmed the offence was caused by a different player, which should be addressed now as a case of mistaken identity. The referee has apologised for his error.”