Mancini: I built City empire

Roberto Mancini said he feels he had a big hand in building Manchester City into the champions they are.

Mancini steered City to their first Premier League title in 2011-12, before the club again reigned in England last season under Chilean tactician Manuel Pellegrini.

The Italian coach, who has since spent one season at Super Lig powerhouses Galatasaray before agreeing to having his contract cancelled, said he feels like he had a hand in City’s ongoing fortunes after his four-season stint at Eastlands.

“I think that we started to build this team five years ago,” Mancini said.

“In two years we won the Premier League, the FA Cup, we won everything in England.

“And this current team are playing nine of my players all of the time. I am very happy with that because I know these players.

“I think it’s not easy to build a strong team with only four or five years.

“They are a team like Bayern Munich, Real Madrid and Barcelona … big teams that have been like that for 50 years.

“You need the time to improve. But we have a big chance also to be one of the best teams in Europe.”

The job-less Mancini said he would be keen to coach in Germany, but acknowledged the language barrier could be a significant problem.

“Yes I like the Bundesliga, I think that the championship in the fast five years, has improved a lot,” Mancini said.

“And there are really good players. Good teams, and good managers.

“The problem there is the language. If it wasn’t for this, it could be an option.”