Vieira: Man City can qualify for the Champions League
Published 23:00 09/02/10 By David Anderson
Patrick Vieira insists he can help Manchester City make the Champions League after coming through his full debut.
Vieira was delighted to play his first 90 minutes back in the Premier League and believes his new team-mates are top-four material.
The win lifts City to fifth - level on points with fourth-placed Liverpool - and they have a game in hand on the Reds.
"I really believe we are strong enough to finish in the top four," said the former Arsenal star. "There's still a long way to go. It's important to win each game and see where we can go, but we are very confident.
"This was my first 90 minutes for quite some time and I feel all right. It was very physical, of course, and when you play against Bolton you expect this kind of game.
"I think when you play alongside great players, it makes it easier for you and these are three really important points for us.
"The important thing was to win the game after the defeat at Hull and we are very pleased to have done that."
Boss Roberto Mancini shares Vieira's confidence and feels the 33-year-old has another three years left in him.
"I played until I was 36 - and played very well," said the Italian. "I think Patrick can play for another three years and I was happy that he played without any problems after being out for a month.
"I think he will get better and he can be important for us over the rest of the season.
"We must win our next game against Stoke on Tuesday if we want to continue in this way. It will be a crucial match and after that difficult game at Stoke, we will have three games and we will see if we can arrive where we want to arrive."
Adam Johnson shone on his first start for City, but Bolton manager Owen Coyle felt his side were unlucky to lose.
"If City are honest, they will have to admit that they were fortunate," he said. "We made them look ordinary and the big decisions went against us.
"It was a soft penalty and whether it was a penalty remains to be seen. The ball was going out, but it was given.
"The second goal was an unbelievable finish, but I would suggest we had moments before that to equalise."
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