Defender Kolo Toure tells Man City to up their game

Kolo Toure has warned his Manchester City team-mates they need to be “more focused than ever” if they are to justify the club’s lavish spending by winning silverware this season.

Despite victories in just two of their previous five league games, English football’s biggest spenders will go level on points with Premier League leaders Arsenal if they win away at bottom-of-the-table West Ham on Saturday.

Roberto Mancini’s expensively-assembled team can make a real statement of intent as Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea — the three clubs directly above them in the table — do not play until Sunday and Monday.

A win over the Hammers would set City up for the busy Christmas and New Year programme, which sees Mancini’s side face Everton, Newcastle, Aston Villa and Blackpool before the trip to Arsenal on January 5.

And Toure insists the forthcoming period, which also includes a Europa League tie against Juventus in Turin on December 16, could shape City’s season.

“The consistency is coming, but we still need to take each game as it comes and not think that because we are playing the team at the bottom of the table that things will be easier,” said the Ivory Coast international defender.

“In fact, I think the wins will be harder to come by because we are riding high near the top and the teams we play will be more cautious and treat us as a bigger scalp.

“We need to keep doing what we’ve been doing in the last month and be more focused than ever.

“There are teams playing each other around us but we mustn’t think of them — just what we have to do.”

He added: “The season is very long and neither this nor the next weekend will decide who wins the Premier League. We need to remain unbeaten for as long as possible because then it becomes part of your mentality.

“We will treat West Ham the same as we would a team from the top four.”

Toure came off early with a calf injury in the 1-0 win over Bolton last Saturday, but the former Arsenal player is hopeful of facing West Ham, who start the weekend three points adrift of safety with two wins from 16 league games.

Despite West Ham’s predicament, City manager Mancini is expecting a “tricky” encounter at Upton Park after claiming the Hammers are in a false position.

“West Ham will be a difficult game because they are having a bad time at the moment, but I think they have a good squad,” said the Italian.

“They don’t deserve to be bottom of the table and it is going to be a tricky game. But we need to play the same, away or at home, and our record away is good this season.”

West Ham go into the game on the back of a 1-0 defeat at Sunderland, after hammering Manchester United 4-0 in the League Cup.

Matthew Upson, the Hammers captain, said the east London club’s recent performances indicated they could escape relegation.

“I think we’ve improved,” said the England defender.

“We look like we’ve got a chance whereas, maybe two weeks ago, we weren’t looking in such a positive state as we are now.

“It’s good that the team can feel like that and I’m going into every game thinking we can take something from it.

“We need to set our stall out against Manchester City like we have in our last two home games, really take it to them, press the ball and decide how the game will pan out.”