Capital One Cup action kicks off at 2:45 p.m. ET today as Manchester City takes on West Ham United at Etihad Stadium in the semifinals. Live stream the game by clicking this link.
Man City boss Manuel Pellegrini recognizes that West Ham United is having a rough go of late, but that doesn't stop him from preparing to the utmost. On Sunday West Ham was beaten 5-0 by Nottingham Forest, an outcome Pellegrini puts almost no stock in.
"They had an awful result but I don't think they played with their best XI. They played with young players," Pellegrini said. "I am absolutely sure it will be a very different game to what they played on Sunday. I think that in this job as a manager - in any club, in every part of the world - you are always under a lot of pressure."
Pellegrini also said he believed West Ham should be able to turn their season around, even though pressure is mounting on their coach. "When the results are not the results the club wants, maybe sometimes it can be more nervous, but I think he is doing very good work in West Ham so I don't think he will have any problems."
Pellegrini has his own pressures, but they're of a happier variety. At second place in the Barclays Premier League, Man City has a legitimate chance to win titles in the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup, as well as the Capital One. Pellegrini swears up and down though that his focus isn't beyond the task at hand.
We are not thinking about the four trophies. We are just thinking about winning the next game we have to play," Pellegrini said. "It is one of the two games of the semi-final of Capital One, it is very important and we play here at home. We are going to have to have a very good performance to try to win against West Ham."
© Copyright 2024 Sports World News, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.