Why Manuel Pellegrini Feels Most Pressure at Manchester City After Roma Draw

Manchester City have a handful of players who did not do much to earn their hefty paychecks in City's home Champions League draw with Roma.

In the end, though, it is City's manager who has the most to answer for.

Joe Hart made another high-profile mistake in the City goal, leaving his line far too late to account for Francesco Totti's equalizer. But Hart did not put his own name on the team sheet. Pellegrini did, despite the fact that Hart had seemingly lost his job to Willy Caballero last week.

Caballero must have been apoplectic watching Hart get beaten so easily. Given the aggressive manner with which Caballero plays, it is hard to imagine Caballero stumbling around the way Hart did.

Yaya Toure meandered, loped and half-jogged around the pitch like an old man looking for a glass of milk in the middle of a sleepless night again. But Toure did not put his own name on the team sheet, or leave him on the pitch when it was clear that Toure once again had no desire to play. Pellegrini did.

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Martin Demichelis' lack of pace was as evident against Roma as it was against Barcelona in this competition last season. But Demichelis did not put himself into the City XI. Pellegrini did.

City bought Eliaquim Mangala for a Premier League record transfer fee for a centre-back, and yet it took only one bad half of football by Mangala against Hull City for Pellegrini to bail out on Mangala and once again take his chances with Demichelis in a must-win Champions League match.

There were other culprits in sky blue masquerading as Champions League-caliber footballers. Jesus Navas was hauled off after 45 ineffective minutes. Edin Dzeko left before an hour was played.

Even the normally dependable captain Vincent Kompany inexplicably released Totti into space behind him to lead to the Roma equalizer.

But none of these players are under the sword of Damocles the way Pellegrini is.

Pellegrini's bosses have never backed away from their edict that City were expected to win five trophies in five years under Pellegrini. He got two last season, with the Capital One Cup and a narrow but impressive capture of the Premier League title. The new season does not presently carry the same promise.

City are already five points behind Chelsea in the Premier League table, and Jose Mourinho's side look capable of equaling or bettering the undefeated season posted by Arsenal's Invincibles. Pellegrini can hardly count on defending the Premier League title.

And this result from the home match with Roma is really damaging to City's Champions League hopes. Bayern Munich lead Group E with six points and Roma have four. City will have to beat Bayern at the Etihad or take three points from Roma in Italy if they want to bring Roma back to them.

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You knew, incidentally, how desperate Pellegrini was to create something against Roma when he inserted Frank Lampard into the match in Dzeko's place. The trouble is that everyone has seen this act before.

Lampard was a surprise ingredient against Chelsea, but Roma knew Lampard was coming into this match and they were ready for him. Lampard or no Lampard, City have now played over 180 Champions League minutes this season without scoring one goal in open play. That is unfathomable.

Watching City this season, it feels more and more like the Premier League has figured Pellegrini out. City's Champions League opponents, of course, have always seemed to be one step ahead of Pellegrini and of Roberto Mancini before him.

City are a club that aspire not just to contend with, but to conquer the best teams in Europe. They routinely earn the privilege of an invitation to the Champions League tournament now, but City's owners and chief executives are never going to be satisfied with merely qualifying and meekly capitulating the way they do.

Not to put too fine a point on it, but City have played eight matches that matter (you can keep the Capital One Cup, thanks) in the 2014-15 season. They are 3-3-2 in those eight matches, i.e., one loss away from being a .500 club.

Pellegrini is guaranteed four more Champions League matches this season. If he cannot win them all, City are likely not to survive Group E. That would be a great embarrassment to City, a stain on Pellegrini's resume and could well lead to questions of whether Pellegrini can take City any further than they have already been.

And that, friends, is pressure.