MANCINI UNDER SPOTLIGHT AS CITY BID FADES

next month to assess the club’s progress since finishing third and winning the FA Cup in May. Although Mancini’s side are all but guaranteed a top-two finish after matching last season’s total of 71 points with seven games to play, a string of below-par displays have seen them drop seven points in their last four Premier League games and crash out of Europe to Sporting Lisbon. With incidents of player unrest continuing to undermine their challenge, Mancini’s ability to control his expensive squad will also be considered when deciding if he is still the right man to take the club forward. Most of the problems have inevitably surrounded Mario Balotelli, who scored twice in Saturday’s 3-3 draw with Sunderland but clashed with team-mate Aleksandar Kolarov on the pitch and Yaya Toure in the dressing room. Now City are ready to cut their losses on the volatile striker and hope to sell Balotelli to AC Milan in the summer. Even after a series of on and off-field controversies, Mancini has tried to recognise the value in having the 21-year-old. But his view on the Italy star, once described by Jose Mourinho as ‘unmanageable’, has shifted. City hope Milan are serious about taking Balotelli back to the San Siro, where he played for rivals Inter before joining City for £20million in August 2010. As his club’s challenge continues to stall, captain Vincent Kompany insisted the title race is not over. He said: ‘We have to believe, there is no other choice. ‘Hopefully we can still win the title but, if not, we’ll improve again next season.’