The Chilean's men suffered another blow to their
Premier League title hopes and he feels that a quick turnaround from
Sunday's decisive loss at Anfield was to blame
Manchester City boss
Manuel Pellegrini says that his side were still suffering from their loss to
Liverpool in Wednesday's shock 2-2 draw with
Sunderland.
The
hosts took the lead within two minutes at the Etihad Stadium but were
nearly undone by a Connor Wickham double before Vito Mannone's late
mistake allowed Samir Nasri to equalise.
Pellegrini confessed
after the game that he had been "very worried" in anticipation of the
game, which ended with his side six points behind the Reds with only one
game left in hand, their hopes of winning the title slipping away.
"Chances
[of winning the league] are less than before the match," he told the
press, "[but] we will continue fighting to the end.
"I don't think there was less confidence. We couldn't take out of our mind the game against Liverpool.
"Before
the match I was very worried about this match. I'm sure, in just three
days, it is very difficult for the players to take their mind off
Liverpool. They are more mentally tired than physically tired."
Attacking
midfielder David Silva was a late withdrawal due to an ankle injury but
Pellegrini says that the problem is a minor one.
"David has a
problem in his ankle," the Chilean stated. "He played the last two games
but playing twice in a week wasn’t possible. We will see how he is for
Monday."
Sunderland boss Gus Poyet was glad to have got some
reward for his side's efforts, though he remains cautious on their
chances of survival, with the Black Cats still six points from safety
with only one game in hand.
He remarked: "I'm realistic and I'm not going to change now. We played a great game and we deserved something.
"You
need to realise the situation we are in and I think all of you [the
media] thought we would collapse. The players know how important it is
to the club and fans and the need to keep going.
"It's going to
give us a little bit of confidence and give us a chance to go with a
different two approaches for the rest of the season.
"I'm sure
the players will go there [to Chelsea, for their next Premier League
game on Saturday] and play. We are not playing for Liverpool. I'm sure
Luis Suarez is going to be happy tonight, with one team less [in the
title race]."
Wickham, who scored both Sunderland goals, had only
recently returned from a loan spell at Leeds United but Poyet declared
his faith in the youngster.
"When I got to the club there were
five or six strikers. It was impossible to play them all," the Uruguayan
recalled. "He went away and played well.
"If he delivers, he's
going to keep playing. It's very simple in our situation. If you
deliver, then you will get the chance to play."
Title : sports - Manchester City haunted by Liverpool loss, laments Pellegrini after Sunderland draw
Description : The Chilean's men suffered another blow to their Premier League title hopes and he feels that a quick turnaround from Sunday's ...