MANCHESTER CITY STARS MUTINY

[RoterTeufel]

MANCHESTER CITY STARS MUTINY

ROBERTO MANCINI faces open revolt from his exhausted Manchester City players.

Starsport understands his relationship with some key dressing-room figures had deteriorated even before Sunday’s defeat at Swansea, which saw Manchester City replaced by Manchester United at the top of the Premier League.

Mancini is believed to have angered his misfiring squad by staying in Portugal following their Europa League defeat to Sporting Lisbon on Thursday.

Instead of returning home immediately after the game, as is often the case, Mancini’s men stayed on in Portugal until Saturday and trained in the sweltering heat.

They then flew to Cardiff and stayed in Wales overnight before crashing 1-0 at Swansea. A club insider has revealed the mood has deteriorated to such a point that a number of players now want the Italian removed from his position at the end of the campaign – if not sooner.

“This was a watershed moment in terms of the squad’s feelings towards the manager,” said the source, who claimed that Mancini’s only true allies appear to be David Pizzaro, Mario Balotelli and his Italian-speaking backroom staff.