Manuel Pellegrini lifted the Premier League title in his first season in charge of Manchester City then vowed: “This is just the start.”
Chilean Pellegrini was given a daunting mandate of five trophies in five years by City’s board when he took over from Roberto Mancini last summer – and has lifted two in his first season.
But he says City cannot rest on their laurels and must improve again next season when they will be looking to retain their title and conquer the Champions League.
“Big teams cannot be satisfied with one title,” he said, after becoming the first non-European coach to win the English league with a 2-0 victory over West Ham. “It has been a brilliant season. We kept going the longest in all four competitions and we managed to win two.
“We must celebrate for a couple of days but then we must start thinking where we can improve and start building for next season.
“Over the last four years this club has changed. In the past it was a big club but it was not fighting for the title. It started to change when Roberto Mancini won the FA Cup and then the League title and now we must continue to improve and to keep winning.”
After goals from Samir Nasri and skipper Vincent Kompnay ensured City finished two points clear of Liverpool, Pellegrini admitted he took as much satisfaction from the style in which City played as he did from them finishing first.
He said his first task was to re-build the confidence of the players which had been eroded under the fractious man-management of his predecessor.
He added: “When I arrived relations [between manager and players] was not so good. It it was very important to convince them all how we can play and how important to be very close – players, management and fans to try and win a very difficult title.
“It has been a season for all of us to enjoy, the fans, the players, me also because of the way we have played.
“We may have players to defend and play on the counter attack but I would never be happy to win titles that way. We won by scoring 102 goals – the most in the Premier League – and with more goals [156] in all competitions, a record for an English club.
“It is the way a team with the quality of players we have must play.”
As UEFA prepare to announce their sanctions on City for breaching their financial fair play regulations, skipper Vincent Kompany said it was not a day to talk about cash or answer accusations that the club’s Abu Dhabi billionaire owner Sheikh Mansour has “bought” the title for the second time in three years.
Kompany said: “Forget about the money and everything. As a kid, you grow up and dream of lifting trophies, I feel like I am living that dream when I do this.
“We are building a club. Not just a team that wins trophies every now and again. Next year we need to be even better. If you want to be a big club then this must be one of so many.”
Meanwhile, Sam Allardyce launched a defiant defence of his time at Upton Park amid rumours he could be sacked by the Hammers board.
He said: “We are established in the Premier League for the second season on the trot – exactly where I was asked to get us to be. Statistically, year three is better but that depends if you can improve your squad.
“We have had no real threat of relegation for a while and we have done the job after our difficulties in January. We have won seven out of 15 – nearly a 50 per cent win rate.”
Manchester City vs West Ham Match Stats
MAN CITY: Hart 6; Zabaleta 7, Kompany 7, Demichelis 6.5, Kolarov 6.5; Toure 7 (Negredo 86), Garcia 6; Nasri 8, Silva 7.5 (Milner 76, 6), Aguero 5.5; Dzeko 5.5 (Fernandinho 69, 6).
Subs not used: Pantilimon, Lescott, Clichy, Jovetic.
Scorers: Nasri 39, Kompany 49
Booked: Demichelis, Noble
WEST HAM: Adrian 6.5; O’Brien 5.5, Tomkins 5.5, Reid 5, McCartney 5; Noble 6, Taylor 5; Downing 5, Nolan 5.5 (Jarvis 64, 5), Diame 5.5 (J Cole 81); Carroll 4.5 (C Cole 74, 6).
Subs not used: Armero, Vaz Te, Collins, Jaaskelainen.
Booked: Nolan, Noble
Referee: Martin Atkinson 7
Star man: Samir Nasri
Manchester City 2 West Ham 0 Match Video
[media id=1073 width=610 height=340]Manchester City Premier League Trophy Ceremony Video
English Premier League Match Week 38 Results
Sunday, 11 May
Man City 2 West Ham 0
Sunderland 1 Swansea City 3
West Brom 1 Stoke City 2
Norwich City 0 Arsenal 2
Fulham 2 Crystal Palace 2
Cardiff City 1 Chelsea 2
Hull City 0 Everton 2
Liverpool 2 Newcastle 1
Southampton 1 Man United 1
Tottenham 3 Aston Villa 0
Barclays Premier League Match Week 38 Table
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