Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini insists that the Chelsea game will be important for his team, but won't decide the fate of the Premier League title this season.
The Citizens make their trip to Stamford Bridge to take on league leaders Chelsea this afternoon and will be eyeing a win in order to bridge the gap at the top of the table.
Having drawn and lost their last two league matches, against Everton and Arsenal respectively, and also being knocked out of the FA Cup after losing to Championship side Middlesbrough last week, the Citizens will be looking to bounce back in style.
But the Chilean insists that there will be no additional pressure on his team as they still have 48 points to play for in the 16 remaining matches during the season.
“It’s an important game. It’s not the game that will decide the title because after that we have to play for 48 points", Pellegrini said at a press conference.
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The 61-year-old took time to reflect on the 2011/12 title win, when they were eight points behind Manchester United at one point in the season, but went on to win it in the end.
"It's not a final. Remember, City won the title in 2011/12 after being eight points behind Manchester United."
The former Real Madrid boss also sounded confident about his team coping with the absence of midfielder Yaya Toure, who is away playing in the African Cup of Nations.
"He's an important player but we qualified against Roma and beat Bayern Munich without him. Teams don't depend on one player," Pellegrini added.
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