Mancini up for the Cup

Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini believes Aston Villa have an edge over his team as they prepare to meet in the fifth round of the FA Cup.

After being forced to play a fourth-round replay against League One side Notts County, Mancini’s men responded in the best possible way with a 5-0 drubbing at the City of Manchester Stadium on February 20.

But with his side being held to a 1-1 draw at home by Fulham in the English Premier League on Sunday and Villa sweeping to a 4-1 triumph over Blackburn the day before, Mancini is wary of the threat posed by Gerard Houllier’s men.

“I think in this moment, in the last two or three weeks, Aston Villa have played better,” Mancini said. “He (Houllier) has brought new players.”

“I think that the last month was very difficult for us because we lost two incredible games, like against Aston Villa (on January 22), against (Manchester) United (on February 12).”

“On Sunday we drew. I am disappointed about the result, but I think that the result was fair because we didn’t play well and were tired.”

Mancini said he was targeting a strong performance in the FA Cup as he looks to secure City’s first trophy since 1976.

“For us the FA Cup is important. Everything is important for us,” he said.