Houllier: Man City loss in December was the lowest point of my career
Aston Villa manager Gerard Houllier admits the 4-0 defeat by Manchester City in December was 'the lowest point of my career' ahead of Wednesday's FA Cup clash between the clubs at Eastlands.
Villa reached rock bottom with that drubbing in the Barclays Premier League with Houllier accusing his players of giving up without a fight.
But it proved to be a turning point with Villa having lost only two of their 11 league and cup matches since that day of humiliation.
Houllier said: 'It was the poorest performance of any team I have had in my life.
'There was no soul, no attitude. In sport, you can be beaten but you never give up.
'It was the low point of my career. I never in my life, never, had a team that has given up so quickly.
'We looked resigned to things rather than trying to fight to get back into the game.
'We hit rock bottom there.'
Houllier never doubted he would be able to revive Villa's fortunes with the support of club owner Randy Lerner and chief executive Paul Faulkner.
He said: 'I knew I would turn things around, because I had the faith of the chairman and the chief executive. We work closely together.
'It was just that I was too soft in trusting players too long. That is probably what happened.
'We recovered after that. We have only lost twice since that, home against Sunderland when we were down to 10 men and away to Manchester United away when we played well.
'Ever since that Manchester City game, we've started to build and improve.'
Houllier points to a 1-0 home success over City in January as the springboard for Villa's upturn in fortunes.
He said: 'We were a bit lucky. Honestly they were better than us. We managed to get an early goal and we hung on.
'We had a couple of chances but they were superior to us.
'But that performance was the starting base because the team stuck together more and held on for the result.
'We have improved physically and mentally. We have improved as a team.
'The squad lives together better. They realise it is not just 11 players and the rest.
'We have quality everywhere. We also improved in the ball retention, passing and movement.'
Houllier believes his players now have the hunger and desire to win as they look to try and emulate the Carling Cup success of local rivals Birmingham.
He said: 'When I was at Liverpool, the success of Manchester United did give me a bit of a boost to win things there as well.
'What players remember on their last bed is their joy and their records and their medals won, their success.
'This is what our players have got to be aware of and it creates a unique bonding between them.
'Money can't buy the success we're talking about or what to achieve. Forget about that.
'What matters in your sporting life unless you are not passionate is you have done everything to win things.
'We now have the quality to win things.'
Mancini: Big clubs treated differently
Roberto Mancini believes it is 'normal' that big clubs are treated differently after being left surprised by the decision not to punish Wayne Rooney.
Manchester United striker Rooney escaped any retrospective action from the Football Association following his elbow on Wigan Athletic midfielder James McCarthy last weekend.
Referee Mark Clattenburg dealt with the incident at the time by awarding a free-kick, leaving the FA unable to take any further action against Rooney.
Wigan chairman Dave Whelan was unhappy with the FA's decision and claimed that Premier League leaders United receive preferential treatment.
Manchester City boss Mancini feels there is disparity in how clubs are treated and suggested it is something which happens across Europe's big leagues.
"Yes, I was surprised," said the former Inter Milan coach regarding the decision not to suspend Rooney. "For me it was a red card.
"I think this happens in every country. Every club gets different treatment.
"Here, in Italy and Spain, it's normal that the big clubs get treated differently."
Johnson cup boost for City
Michael Johnson is ready to take the next step towards ending his two-and-a-half year injury nightmare as he will be named on the bench for tonight’s FA Cup fifth-round tie against Aston Villa.
Former youth-team captain Johnson, 23, is trying to rebuild his career, having not made a first-team start for the club since September 2008.
An abdominal problem kept him out of action for a few days short of 12 months, and he then suffered a serious knee ligament injury during a training session in December 2009.
The midfielder’s promising talent saw him compared to the great Colin Bell after breaking into the senior Blues side under Stuart Pearce in October 2006.
His last City appearance was as a goalscoring substitute in a 5-1 Carling Cup victory over Scunthorpe just over 16 months ago.
And his injury troubles mean he hasn’t featured in an 18-man matchday squad for the Blues since the 2-1 win over Chelsea in December 2009, when he was an unused sub.
Mancini sprang a surprise by taking Johnson to Greece as part of the club party for the Europa League last-32 first-leg tie against Aris Salonika a fortnight ago.
At the time, the City boss said that the midfielder was not ready for first-team action, and is still wary of asking him to do too much too soon.
Johnson had played in all six of the Blues’ Elite Development Squad games since Christmas before they met Wigan last night.
And he completed his first 90 minutes for the EDS – formerly the reserves – when they lost 3-2 to Bolton last Wednesday.
“Michael Johnson will probably be on the bench tonight,” Mancini said. “He has played a few times for the reserves.
“I don’t think he is ready to play a full game for the first team yet, but maybe he can play for 20 minutes or half-an-hour.”
Mancini would love a fully-fit Johnson to give him some more options in midfield, as he continues to scramble around for enough players to fill a bench.
As it is, the City manager will use the young midfielder sparingly while looking to get some of his other walking wounded back into action.
After recovering from a calf strain, Micah Richards is OK to return tonight to face Villa, of whom he has fond FA Cup memories.
Richards scored his first senior goal for City with a dramatic late header to salvage an FA Cup replay at Villa Park in February 2006, then got so carried away with himself that he accidentally swore during a live TV interview immediately afterwards.
David Silva, who sat out Sunday’s 1-1 draw with Fulham, is battling to overcome an ankle problem, but Mancini is hopeful he will figure.
Vincent Kompany, though, won't play as the bruised hip that forced him to miss the Fulham game has not cleared up.
“Kompany has been fantastic,” Mancini said. “His injury is a problem for us. But I hope that maybe against Wigan on Saturday, he will be available.”
Nigel de Jong is still out with an ankle injury, and Saturday evening’s Premier League clash with Wigan also looks like his likeliest return date.
Mancini has repeatedly flagged up a lengthy injury list as the biggest bar to his side’s hopes of cup glory this season.
But he insists he has no regrets about letting three players – Emmanuel Adebayor, Roque Santa Cruz and Wayne Bridge – go out on loan in January.
The City boss said: “These players wanted to go to get games. It was difficult to give them games at that time.
“We don’t have a problem in attack, because we have Balotelli, we have Dzeko, we have Tevez, we have Jo.
“We have a problem in the middle, we have a problem down the channel.
“For me, one of the big problems was the injury to Adam Johnson. He is an important player for us because he can change the game.
“He is very important. His injury was a big problem for us.”
Johnson (ankle) and Shay Given (shoulder) remain on the long-term injury list.
But while Given’s season looks to be over, former Middlesbrough winger Johnson could be back in action after the international break at the end of this month, according to Mancini.
He said: “At this moment, we don’t have enough players. But I hope that we can recover Vinny and Nigel. I hope that Silva will be back tonight to play.
“We hope that Adam Johnson can come back quickly, in 20 days, maybe.
“If we recover all these players, then I don’t think we have a problem.”
Villa will pose a much sterner test tonight than they did when City thumped them at Eastlands in December.
But Mancini hopes to avoid a repeat of the Blues’ surprise defeat at Villa Park in January, when £24m striker Darren Bent grabbed a debut winner.
“I think in the last two or three weeks, Aston Villa have played better,” Mancini said. “The difference is that when we played against Aston Villa in December, we were able to change four or five players in that game.
“We were fresh then. Maybe now, it is different. But for us, the FA Cup is important.”
Mancini will look to bolster his squad in the summer, but Barcelona full-back Dani Alves has played down talk of a move to Eastlands.
Alves has failed to agree a new contract at the Nou Camp, with his current deal running out at the end of next season.
But he said: “I can’t imagine Alves without Barcelona.
“If it were up to me, I would stay. But it doesn’t depend just on me, it depends on two parties.
“If there is an agreement, it will be very welcome, but if the contrary happens, life goes on.
“My dream and my desire are to stay here – I hope everything is resolved soon.”
OTHER BOLLOX
Daniel Sturridge has hinted he could try to make his loan move from Chelsea to Bolton permanent. The striker has scored four goals in as many league games and says he is revelling in the freedom given to him by Trotters boss Owen Coyle. Metro
Juventus are preparing a £17m summer bid for Barcelona midfield misfit Javier Mascherano, who used to play for Liverpool. Daily Mail
Arsenal are hoping to arrange a swap deal that would result in Brazilian midfielder Denilson moving to Juventus and his compatriot Felipe Melo heading in the opposite direction. talkSPORT
Tottenham are considering a move for Arsenal striker Nicklas Bendtner who is frustrated at the lack of first-team opportunities at the Emirates. CaughtOffside
Liverpool are leading Tottenham and Manchester United in the race for France and Toulouse midfielder Moussa Sissoko. Daily Mail
Chelsea have stepped up their interest in Napoli's Slovakian playmaker Marek Hamsik, sending scouts to watch the 23-year-old in his side's 3-0 defeat by AC Milan. talkSPORT
Former Celtic winger Aidan McGeady, now playing for Spartak Moscow, has been linked to a big-money move to Russian champions Zenit St Petersburg. The 24-year-old could treble his wages to £120,000 a week. (Daily Record)
Manchester United are close to agreeing a £600,000 compensation package for Anderlecht winger Adnan Januzaj. The 16-year-old, dubbed the Belgian David Beckham, will sign a four-year deal at Old Trafford. (Daily Mail)
England manager Fabio Capello is considering calling up Celtic striker Gary Hooper, who has scored 15 goals in 22 games for the Bhoys since his summer move from Scunthorpe. the Times (requires subscription)
Fifa's executive committee will begin a two-day meeting on Wednesday to decide on the number of berths each continent will be allocated for the 2014 World Cup. Daily Mirror
Wolves forward Kevin Doyle believes his side, who are third from bottom in the table, require four more wins to ensure their Premier League survival this season. Daily Mirror
Liverpool are hopeful £35m January signing Andy Carroll will make his debut for the club in Sunday's Premier League home game against leaders and bitter rivals Manchester United. the Guardian
Tottenham winger Gareth Bale is losing his race to be fit for the second leg of his side's Champions League last-16 tie against AC Milan on 9 March at White Hart Lane. Daily Mirror
Leyton Orient midfielder and boyhood West Ham fan Jimmy Smith has admitted that he laughed as Arsenal succumbed to a farcical late winner against Birmingham in Sunday's Carling Cup final. Orient face the Gunners in an FA Cup reply on Wednesday. Daily Telegraph
Carling Cup winners Birmingham will not open talks with midfielders Lee Bowyer and Sebastian Larsson until the end of the season, when they hope their Premier League status will have been secured. Daily Mirror
Arsenal striker Marouane Chamakh has revealed his team's Carling Cup final defeat by Birmingham was met by a silence in the losers' dressing room, with not even manager Arsene Wenger uttering a word to his deflated players. Metro
The Gunners, meanwhile, are planning to sell off more land around their Emirates Stadium after announcing a £2.5m half-yearly loss on Monday. the Sun
The world's most expensive season ticket has gone on sale at Peterborough United. For £15,000, a well-heeled Posh fan can watch their team from the directors' box and eat as many meat pies as they like. Daily Mail
West Ham co-owner David Gold is recovering well after being admitted to hospital on Sunday night suffering from cholangitis - an internal inflammation - and blood poisoning condition septicaemia. Daily Mail
The mancityfans.net football forum
The BEST FORUM in all the land and all the world
