Man City's Mancini confident his side on the improve

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini is of the belief that his side is bridging the divide with league leaders Manchester United in terms of quality.

Saturday's Manc derby saw Sir Alex Ferguson's men record a 2-1 win at Old Trafford thanks to a sublime Wayne Rooney goal but Mancini was not too perturbed after his side put in a fairly strong performance.

He now feels that the gap between the clubs is certainly closing: "We are very close to United now, very close," he said.

"In the five derbies I have been involved in, there is only one time when we didn't deserve to win.

"And again, we didn't deserve to lose this one. But United are this much ahead [holds two fingers narrowly apart] of us and the other teams. Just by this much. It's very close.

"We should improve. I have been saying this for six months but, if we come here and play like this against United, then we will be okay. I am very proud of my players and I have told them this. I think we have the right character.

"After we equalised, I thought we could go on and win. United didn't play well in the second-half but Rooney's goal changed the game. This is the mentality that comes when you have been winning things for a long time.

"We can change this though, because we have changed a lot and improved a lot as a team. I think we need to win one cup or one title because, if we do, then we can change the whole mentality of the team."

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