Boss hits back at Hansen

The Manager usually laughs off pointed barbs about his squad, but Alan Hansen's "minus six out of 10" remarks drew the following response from the boss as reported in several papers:

“Pundits on Match of the Day, or whatever, just have an opportunity to nail individuals in the public domain,” Hughes said. “But we’re not going to do that because that’s not what we’re about. We look to analyse our mistakes and make sure, in future, we are better in similar situations. We won’t single out individual players. That job is done by pundits.

“We are under more scrutiny than any previous Manchester City team, but it’s open to debate as to whether we are scrutinised more than Manchester United, Chelsea or whoever. We have to deal with it. If we don’t win, we are open to criticism.”

The boss was grabbed at the airport as he and the squad flew out to Abu Dhabi, with Craig Bellamy among them. The Guardian draws parallels between Ryan Giggs and the City striker, and Hughes said to Danny Taylor:

"As time goes on, there could be that situation. Craig knows his body better than anybody else and when he feels he needs a break or senses he could have an issue if he continues training or playing he will pull himself out. I think that 's how it will be in the future and it will be better for him and them [Wales]because it will enable him to ensure his career runs its course and is as long as it can be. We have to protect him because it is a long season and we want to get the best out of him."

Robinho was also spotted by eagle-eyed reporters boarding the plane to Abu Dhabi, although he will make the short trip to Qatar to meet up with Brazil for the England game.

"He's not fit to play," Hughes said. "He has had one warm-up with the first team on Friday and that 's all he has done in two months. To throw him into an international game would be crazy, but we will go through the protocol and make sure he is there [with Brazil] when he needs to be. Following that, I'd like to think he'd come straight back."