Kelechi Iheanacho said Manchester City must “fight” to regain the scintillating form they showed at the start of the season.
The Nigerian striker admitted the City players were down after the 4-2 defeat to Leicester on Saturday, a result that saw them slip to fourth in the Premier League table and extended their poor run of form.
“It shouldn’t be a good reaction when a club like Manchester City loses 4-2 to Leicester,” the 20-year-old said. “Everyone expected us to go there and win so I think we as a team are disappointed for the performance we put in that day.
“It’s not what we expected but as we all know this is football. Anything can happen – you can lose and you can win. When you fall you have to get back up fighting.
“We have to keep fighting hard. There are a lot of games to play so we need to come back stronger like we started the season.
“We need to focus and continue fighting. We must fight for the club, the fans and the manager. Even when you fall, you lose, you must continue giving your best.
“We lost but we are still in a good position and anything can happen. We have to keep our concentration going and win our games.
“We have to focus on this game and make sure we get the result that we need.”
After impressing last season with is ability to conjure goals from limited game time, Iheanacho has once again demonstrated his goalscoring prowess under Pep Guardiola, bagging five goals in eight starts at a rate of one every 140 minutes.
With Sergio Aguero currently serving a four-match ban, Iheanacho is likely to see more of the action and he is fully aware how important it is for him to make an impression when he’s given an opportunity to play.
“Whenever I get a chance in the team I think it’s a great opportunity for me,” he said.
“Whenever I step on the pitch to represent this team, even if I only get a minute or two, I look at it as an opportunity to prove something.
“Every time I’m on the pitch all my focus is to make sure I help the team. Every time I don’t do well I’m not happy because everyone is doing their best so I need to make sure I do the same.”