Mancini rewarded for bold approach

ROBERTO Mancini does not expect Sir Alex Ferguson to be any more worried about FA Cup semi–final opponents Manchester City than he was before their 5–0 thrashing of Sunderland.

City leapfrogged Chelsea into third place in the Barclays Premier League with yesterday’s emphatic home victory.

It made for an interesting Sunday afternoon's entertainment for Manchester United manager Ferguson, who viewed the game from the stands at Eastlands ahead of his side's cup showdown with City at Wembley on April 16.

But asked if he thought Ferguson might be concerned by what he had witnessed, Mancini said: "I don't think so.

"He knows the FA Cup semi–final is one game in which anything can happen, and I think he knows Manchester City very well — like we know Manchester United."

Adam Johnson, making his first start since injuring his ankle in January, opened the scoring in the ninth minute and captain Carlos Tevez doubled the Blues' advantage on the quarter–hour mark from the penalty spot.

Second–half strikes from David Silva, Patrick Vieira and Yaya Toure completed the rout as City moved a point above Chelsea.

They are also now six points ahead of fifth–placed Tottenham in the race for Champions League football, although both Spurs and Chelsea have a game in hand.