Mancini: I won’t quit as boss
ROBERTO MANCINI insisted 'You'll have to sack me' after another catastrophic Manchester City defeat.
The Italian's job is on a knife-edge after City slumped at Polish minnows Lech Poznan in the Europa League.
Last night's humiliating loss was their third in a row and there have been a series of dressing-room bust-ups.
But Mancini, who has blown £300million on building a superstar line-up, refuses to quit - saying: "For me it is totally clear, I will stay at City until they fire me.
"I've seen the owner Sheikh Mansour two or three times and we have a good relationship.
"I also have very frequent contact with the president, Khaldoon Al Mubarak.
"We speak three or four times a week and he often comes to training."
City are fourth in the Premier League despite their mega-bucks outlay on new players.
But Mancini insists he will eventually get it right - if he is given time.
He told French magazine So Foot: "As a coach I've taken teams that weren't winning such as Fiorentina, Lazio and Inter and I've won."
Mancini now faces crunch games against West Brom on Sunday and bitter rivals Manchester United next Wednesday.
His side were sunk by two late Poznan goals in their Group A clash.
And he groaned: "We didn't deserve to lose. Everything is against us and Poznan were lucky.
"To say the team are against me is all rubbish.
"There were some hard discussions with some players but the team follows me.
"The club have asked me to qualify for next season's Champions League and we are going well for that.
"We must change this situation. It's difficult but we must pay more attention in the way we play.
"We can only change things if we stay together.
"We have lost the last three games but, here, we didn't deserve to lose. That's football."
There was some good news for Mancini as skipper Carlos Tevez flew back from Argentina to Manchester after his thigh injury and trained at Carrington yesterday. SUN
TRANSFER BOLLOX
Udinese's Chilean international winger Alexis Sanchez, 21, could be on the verge of a move to Manchester United, according to the player's agent. Daily Mirror
Meanwhile, United target Steven Defour is being chased by a number of European clubs, according to the 22-year-old Standard Liege and Belgium midfielder's agent. Daily Mirror
Bristol City could be forced to sell former England goalkeeper David James after the club announced record losses of about £11m for last year. Daily Mirror
Liverpool will move for Athletic Bilbao's 6ft 5in striker Fernando Llorente, if they lose Fernando Torres in January. talkSPORT
Liverpool manager Roy Hodgson is considering a January move for Tottenham's out-of-favour winger David Bentley. caughtoffside.com
Real Madrid have joined the race for Liverpool and Arsenal target Ibrahim Affelay, who currently plays for PSV Eindhoven. IM Scouting
Tottenham are set to swoop for rising Lyon star Alexandre Lacazette, 19, considered one of the best young forwards in Europe. talkSPORT
OTHER BOLLOX
Netherlands manager Bert van Marwijk said he "does not care" about Arsene Wenger's concerns over Robin van Persie after picking him for their friendly with Turkey on 17 November. Arsenal boss Wenger had described his potential call-up as a "scandal", the striker having been out since August with an ankle injury. Daily Express
West Ham will meet the board of the Olympic Park Legacy Company on Friday as the east London club make their pitch for becoming tenants at Stratford's Olympic Stadium after London 2012. talkSPORT
England coach Fabio Capello is keeping an eye on Cardiff's Jay Bothroyd after the striker took his tally to 12 goals this season for the Championship leaders. Daily Express
Tottenham striker Jermain Defoe has urged star winger Gareth Bale to stay at the club for the long-term: "We are a coming force and big clubs keep their best players," he said. Daily Mirror
Bolton manager Owen Coyle says Spurs boss Harry Redknapp is the "perfect candidate to succeed Fabio Capello as England coach. Coyle described Redknapp as "an outstanding manager and a terrific man." Daily Mail
West Ham chairman David Gold has renewed his attack on his successors at Birmingham City, describing their chairman Peter Pannu as "disgusting" after reneging on a promise to keep him on as chairman. Daily Telegraph
West Brom have come out on top of the Times newspaper's Financial Fair Play League, which highlights the clubs obtaining the best results per pound spent. the Times [requires registration]
Tickets for England's 17 November friendly with France at Wembley are being sold for as little as £5 as the Football Association looks to boost the attendance. About 44,000 tickets have been sold so far. The Sun
Sunderland manager Steve Bruce has accused Newcastle of a lack of "etiquette" after the Monkees hit Daydream Believer was played over the stadium tannoy at the end of the Magpies 5-1 victory over the Black Cats on Sunday. Newcastle fans had been taunting Bruce with an X-rated version of the song throughout the match. Daily Mirror
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