City should grind the rumour mill with win

Roberto Mancini may be writing off Manchester City's title chances but with Newcastle next on the radar hopes must be growing at Eastlands that the Italian's expensively assembled squad are genuine contenders for the Premiership crown.

Mancini seemed determined to dispel any such thoughts last week as he conceded the title to Chelsea before the teams met, but following his team's hard-fought victory over the champions, similar protestations post-match were sounding distinctly hollow.

City were more than a match for the London giants, with Yaya Toure and in particular Nigel De Jong bossing the midfield — no easy feat against a team renowned for their own brand of steam rolling.

Doubts still remain over their attacking prowess, but with the effervescent Carlos Tevez up front the Eastlanders always have a chance of scoring, and so it proved last Saturday.

Of course, it is still early days, but a further three points against newly promoted Newcastle this weekend would see City in a healthy position at the start of October.

Newcastle, meanwhile, are finding life back in the top flight far from easy with inconsistency being the major problem affecting the St James' outfit.

Chris Houghton saw his defence bullied out of the game against Stoke last week, although one feels he will not be the last manager to suffer that fate.

This season, of course, is all about survival for the Magpies and if they can shake off their dodgy home form, then there is enough quality in the St James' ranks to guarantee top-flight survival.

One of the success stories in the North East so far this season has been the form of Joey Barton, whose early season statistics show he is getting back to the kind of performances that made him such an influential figure at Eastlands.

There is always a worry about his temperament of course, and with the equally volatile Andy Carroll leading the line for the Magpies tomorrow there should be plenty of spice when the teams cross the line.

City, however, as we now know, are not a team that can be easily intimidated and following their battling Europa draw on Thursday against Juventus, Mancini can be quietly pleased that his players are shedding their image as mere mercenaries and slowing coming together as a team.

There are still rumours of player disharmony at Eastlands, but if the Italian can maintain his winning ways and deliver City the title, he will find those voices of discontent drowned out by a chorus of acclaim.