LONDON: Roberto Mancini laughed off suggestions that defeat by Leeds United in the FA Cup could cost him his job on Friday, saying 20 other Premier League managers would also have to go if Manchester City’s owners wielded the axe.
A morale-sapping 3-1 defeat at Southampton last weekend left champions City 12 points behind Manchester United in the title race and the FA Cup is now the only silverware realistically still in the club’s sights this season.
“All the people who talk about this don’t understand football,” Mancini, whose side finished bottom of their Champions League group, told reporters when asked if he was worried about getting the sack.
“If Manchester City should sack me, the other 20 teams in the Premier League should be without a manager.”
Mancini led City to their first English title since 1968 last season, having won the FA Cup a year before that for the first time since 1969. REUTERS
