Hart admits Manchester City not at their peak

Joe Hart admits Manchester City are not currently playing at their peak, which is a worry for their supporters ahead of the derby clash on Sunday.

The Blues looked to have finally got their UEFA Champions League campaign on track last week when they led CSKA Moscow 2-0 at half-time in the Russian capital, but the home side scored twice in the second half to secure a draw. And days later the Premier League champions were undone at West Ham United, who were good value for their 2-1 win at Upton Park.

City were hoping to get back on track on Wednesday night when Newcastle United were the visitors to the Etihad Stadium in the League Cup, a competition Manuel Pellegrini’s side won last season. However, the Magpies, who had won just four of their previous 11 games this term, stunned the home side by earning a 2-0 win to send the holders crashing out in the last-16.

The defence of the title they won last May will be back on the agenda for the Blues this weekend, when they could find themselves nine points behind Chelsea when they take to the field. Hart accepts he and his team-mates are not performing to the best of their abilities right now, and he knows the visit of rivals United on Sunday is an ideal match for them to rediscover their form.

“I think we’ve set up a good basis but in the last two or three games we’ve stumbled a bit,” the City goalkeeper said. “Looking back, the Moscow second half was really disappointing. West Ham was a hard game, a really hard game and people are going to struggle there. We know we can do better, we know we can do a lot better. The Capital One Cup was a trophy we were looking to defend and we were not up to the standard we wanted to be and the manager didn’t shy away from that.

“We know what we are as a unit. Not everyone is exactly at their peak just now. We just need a few players, myself included, to step up and it will come back. This is one of those difficult patches we’ve gone through many a time and as the manager pointed out, last season we had less points and were in a worse position [at this stage] and we won the league. We’ve got to look to things like that but the main thing is to get it right against United on Sunday afternoon.”

A few weeks ago United would not have relished the short trip across town to play their neighbours, but they are slowly improving and, after earning a 1-1 draw with Chelsea last weekend, they may fancy their chances against an out-of-sorts City. They will also be boosted by the return of Wayne Rooney from suspension, whilst Radamel Falcao is also expected to be available again.

Is this just a blip for City, or is their problem more serious? Let us know what you think of their current form and latest results by joining in the discussion below.

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