Monday 13 April 2015 11:41, UK
Niall Quinn believes Manuel Pellegrini's "head is on the block" as Manchester City manager as a string of poor results has seen their season crumble.
City lost 4-2 to Manchester United at Old Trafford in Sunday, and the Blues are now in fourth place despite being Chelsea's biggest challengers at the top of the table for the majority of the season.
Pellegrini's summer signings have not performed as well as he would have liked this term, but Quinn says that even if the recruitment is down to CEO Ferran Soriano or director of football Txiki Begiristain, the Chilean will still be blamed.
Quinn said on Super Sunday: "It is getting messy for Pellegrini now. Begiristain and Soriano will leave Old Trafford today with doubts in their mind about him going forward.
"They will report back to his owners who want to rule the soccer world overnight that this man is struggling a bit. It could cause him a big problem.
"If the recruitment is out of Pellegrini's control, they will still put it down to results. I've never yet seen a club turn around and say: 'It wasn't your fault, it was recruitment.'
"His head is on the block now, he is in the firing line. How they finish off the season is important. They've got to show something that they really want to play for this guy.
"I'm not so sure the great squad, spirit and passion they had last year is still in that dressing room. It's not a particularly comfortable place for Manuel Pellegrini to be in at the moment."
Gary Neville shared Quinn's sentiments on City's spirit, saying United won the match in all areas on the pitch and mentally.
Neville said: "I think it's important to note that Manchester City have been beaten in the areas of hunger and passion and fight, but they were tactically done as well out here today.
"Make no mistake, they could not handle Manchester United's positions on the pitch.
"It wasn't just a case of Manchester City coming here and being outfought, they were actually outplayed in the sense they didn't know what to do.
"Demichelis, Kompany, Yaya Toure, Fernandinho; they were always looking around and didn't know where Herrera was, where Fellaini was.
Neville also admits the off-season may be a summer of change at the Etihad Stadium, both on the pitch and in the dugout.
"It's a crossroads for them now, there will definitely going be change at City, whether it's players, the manager, people above. Certainly some players.
"There are some weeds in the garden and you've got to get them out of the changing room pretty quick. You cannot carry passengers."
