Reyna within reach of City target
Claudio Reyna is demanding Manchester City take a major stride towards their European goal by making FA Cup progress at Aston Villa’s expense tonight.
City boss Stuart Pearce has set his side the target of qualifying for next season’s UEFA Cup and knows victory over David O’Leary’s men could leave them just two wins away from achieving their aim.
A home sixth-round tie with either West Ham or Bolton awaits the winners and, with Champions League-bound Chelsea and Liverpool still in the competition, a place in the final could be enough to seal City’s second European campaign in three seasons.
“The manager set high standards for the team and individuals since he took over,” said Reyna.
“One of the team goals is to get into Europe, so the Villa game represents a big opportunity for us.
“Our home form has been good recently so, while Villa are similar to us in the sense that on some days they perform really well and on others they don’t, it is definitely a winnable game.”
