Pablo Zabaleta calls on his Manchester City team-mates to rekindle the spirit that saw them beat United

Pablo Zabaleta,Manchester City(Getty Images)

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Manchester City defender Pablo Zabaleta has called on his team-mates to show the kind of spirit that saw them beat Manchester United, when they take on Blackburn Rovers on Sunday.

Roberto Mancini’s men have the opportunity to go four points clear of Tottenham Hotspur and strengthen their bid to finish fourth in the Premier League.

Rovers have not won any of their last nine games in the league and are now only one point outside the relegation zone, but the Argentine believes this is all the more reason why City must put in a strong performance.

“We need to be the same as we were against United. We played good football, especially the second half – we played as a group, as a team. We were very solid defending and aggressive in attack.

“The game after an important win can be just as important. The passion and concentration against United was 100 per cent, but when you go to a lower-placed team it’s sometimes different.

“We need to keep it strong and not relax. We must make it difficult to beat Manchester City and focus on getting Premier League points with only six games to go.”

Last year, it was Tottenham who beat the Eastlands club on the final day of the season to compete among Europe’s elite.

Spurs are currently one point behind fourth-placed City, who have played a game less than their London rivals.

But with a game against Harry Redknapp’s men coming up in due course, Zabaleta hopes that his side do not leave it all to do in the game that could potentially decide who achieves Champions League football.

Zabaleta said: “So we need six points against Blackburn and West Ham. Then if we beat Tottenham, we would be in a great position. They obviously need to win their games also, but we must focus on ourselves.”