There is little warmth for chief executive Ferran Soriano, the former Barcelona director, who lacks the personal touch of his predecessor Garry Cook and there is a sense that, from Soriano, through to Pellegrini and a good number of his players, City is just a stopping off point en route to something else.
Advertisement
The Chilean, who is to be replaced by Pep Guardiola, has won one Premier League title and the League Cup twice in his tenure, but saw most fans leave the Etihad Stadium before he took a lap of honour with his players after his final home game in charge against Arsenal.
Sunday’s 2-2 draw with Arsenal means that City’s hopes of finishing in the top-four of the Premier League are no longer in their own hands.
“Things are now out of our hands. He has not had that sharpness for the last few games, but strikers go through up and downs, and you never know when they will score or not”. We need to think like a big club. “It was an unbelievable fight today”.
Wilfried Bony volleyed against the bar late on for Champions League semi-finalists City, who were booed by their supporters at the final whistle.
Sergio Aguero’s eighth-minute opener was canceled out two minutes later by Olivier Giroud’s header from a corner, in a riveting start to the match. Wenger did have cause for worry, however, as Danny Welbeck went down with a knee injury in the first half. He will undergo a scan and could now be a doubt for England’s Euro 2016 squad, announced on Thursday. We try to help each other do the job. It was looking good for the hosts early on after Son Heung-min skipped around Fraser Forster at the by-line before slotting home.
Yet going into Sunday’s 38th and final outing, City will be cast into the cold reality of fifth place should United beat West Ham.
Tottenham, however, do still have a vastly superior goal difference to Arsenal and can finish above them for the first time since 1994/95 if they win at relegation-threatened Newcastle in their final game of the season.
The France defender added: “It’s a big project to be part of, a big club to be part of”.
Pellegrini’s response was typically diplomatic, while not really answering the question, insisting only that it was ‘very important to finish in the best way’.
“It was not brilliant but we did what was necessary”, said Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp.
Advertisement
Fleeting moments of class in a riveting affair relieved the numbing disappointment of the title race for both sides, although it jeopardized Manchester City’s Champions League position.
