Patrick Vieira has claimed that Manchester City's rivals Manchester United are given an advantage because referees are often intimidated by the Old Trafford crowd.
The former Arsenal man expressed his belief that City have been the best side in the Premier League this season, but that this hard work has been undone by poor decisions from officials in United's favour.
In the Red Devils' last home match against Fulham, the visitors were denied a last-minute penalty when Michael Carrick appeared to fell Danny Murphy in the box, with defender Jonny Evans conceding after the 1-0 win that the hosts were lucky that it wasn't given.
"When United play at home they get some advantage that other teams don't get," Vieira told BBC Sport.
"I think when you go to United, Madrid, Barcelona, or Milan, when the referees referee these kind of games, it's always difficult to go against these kind of teams. This is the way it is.
"It's something the teams who are used to winning get all the time, so we need to win games so we have this advantage in the future.
"This is our moment. Since the start of the season we've been the best team and played the best football. I believe the club deserves it.
Despite feeling that Roberto Mancini's side deserve the title, Vieira admits that, because of the champions' three-point lead, they have to be considered favourites at this point.
"When you are first, you have the advantage, they are favourites," the former midfielder explained.
The Frenchman also hailed the return of Carlos Tevez, playing down the dispute between the Argentine and the club which has blighted much of their season.
"We're glad Carlos is back. The quality of these kind of players will be really important at this stage of the season," the 35-year-old added.
"The issue was between him and the club. The players were really pleased to see him back.
"It's important not to lose focus, so many things can happen.
"People try to build this fire between the clubs. The heat is going to get more and more."
0 comments:
Post a Comment