• Italian pledges meal if Manchester City win in the
Carling Cup
• Patrick Vieira unlikely to be risked in first leg
Roberto Mancini watched Manchester City's last
visit to Old Trafford, a 4-3 defeat last September, at his home in
Bologna. Photograph: Michael Regan/Getty Images
Roberto Mancini has said he will offer Sir Alex Ferguson a
special consolation prize should Manchester United fail to make the
Carling Cup final. "Does Alex like pizza?" inquired Manchester
City's new Italian manager as he prepared for the semi-final first
leg against United at Eastlands. "If we win then, OK, I'll bring
the pizza if he brings the wine – a really nice bottle."
This promise was made in extremely jocular vein but it remained
unclear whether Mancini – who just last week extolled the virtues
of pizza accompanied by a glass of wine as a pre-match meal for
players – knows that United's manager has a certain history with
dough-based Italian creations.
When someone mentioned "Pizza-Gate" – the notorious 2004 "battle
of the buffet" when a tunnel scuffle between United and Arsenal's
players and staff saw a slice of pizza hurled at Ferguson, hitting
him on the mouth – Mancini merely smiled.
Such disarmingly beatific beams punctuated the former
Internazionale coach's media briefing and even greeted the
inevitable questions about Robinho. "I have respect for Robinho,"
he insisted. "He is a good man and a good player. I would like
Robinho to always play well but it's not always possible."
If that was a diplomatic understatement the Brazilian could well
be involved at some stage against United as Roque Santa Cruz will
be sidelined for at least a month with recurring calf trouble.
Slightly less worryingly Carlos Tevez – who should start and who
Mancini, incidentally, once tried to buy for Inter – is nursing a
slight hamstring strain.
"I think Santa Cruz is out for one month maybe," said Mancini,
who hopes to have a newly-fit Stephen Ireland on the bench. "It's
the calf, the second time in 20 days and it's a big problem for
me."
Indeed the fitness doubts surrounding Santa Cruz and his
co-strikers almost certaily dictate that Mancini will not be
selling Robinho during this transfer window. Even if he wanted to
offload him – or, perhaps more pertinently someone was willing to
buy the out-of-sorts £32.5m forward – Mark Hughes's successor
cannot afford to weaken his attacking department any further.
The recent arrival of Patrick Vieira has bolstered the midfield
but the former Arsenal and Internazionale enforcer is not ready to
face his old foes from United. "It's better that we don't risk
Patrick," said Mancini. "Because when Patrick comes back in a week
or 10 days I want him to play 20 games."