Mancini praise for Leicester

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini admitted Leicester City’s 2-2 draw in their third-round FA Cup clash was a worthy result.

Despite Leicester taking an early lead, goals to James Milner and Carlos Tevez saw City take edge in front.

But a brave second-half performance from the Championship outfit led to Andy King’s equaliser – a goal which was well-deserved according to Mancini.

“Leicester played very well. They did not deserve to lose this game,” Mancini said.

“Now we understand that if we want to win the FA Cup, we have to play at 100 percent. When you play against a team in the Championship, it is never easy.”

“It’s important we understand the competition, and to win it we must be better.”

King’s goal – his 10th of the season for Leicester – came from a Joe Hart mistake, but Mancini defended his shot-stopper.

“Joe made a mistake but this can happen. He saved us in the first half and he has saved us in a lot of games,” he said.

Mancini said it was ‘important’ his side have another chance to progress when they host the replay and is looking forward to new signing Edin Dzeko, who cost 27 million pounds from Wolfsburg, making an impact with the club.

“Dzeko will be an important player, he is very different from the other strikers we have here. He will be important for the rest of the season. He will play next weekend and be available against Wolverhampton,” he said.

Leicester manager Sven-Goran Eriksson praised the impact of defender Sol Bamba, after he starred in his debut since joining from Hibernian.

Bamba scored in the first half and forced Hart into a terrific save, leading to praise from his boss.

“Sol Bamba is very dangerous at set-pieces – I knew that from when I was in charge of the Ivory Coast for the World Cup,” Eriksson said.

“He scored in a practice match and that was when I saw how good he can be. I hope he continues to perform like that for the rest of the season.”

Eriksson was proud of the way his side, 12th in the Championship, took the game to their more-fancied opponents.

“I must be pleased with the performance and it was a good football match. I’m very proud of my players and they should be proud of their display,” he said.

“We stood up to Manchester City, one of the best teams in the country. All the players were brilliant.”

“You could not see much difference between the teams although, of course, it will not be easy up there for the replay.”