City in confident mood

​Spirits were high down Belvoir Drive today, which proves the players are in a relaxed and confident mood ahead of Saturday’s big derby.

The banter has already started flying Chris Powell’s way after Wayne Bridge’s announcement that he had withdrawn from the England squad.

That obviously leaves a big opportunity for someone to become Fabio Capello’s new left-back and the City players have been suggesting Chris is in line for an international comeback after his performance at Barnsley recently.

I get the impression that Chris is the butt of a lot of the dressing room banter anyway, but I am sure he gives as good as he gets.

Then Andy King was trying to concentrate as he was being interviewed on camera by the BBC, which wasn’t easy as Martyn Waghorn stood a few feet away, gurning like Albert Steptoe with a towel over his head.  As he has done throughout the season, King was able to keep his cool in a tricky situation.

It is good that spirits are high within the camp, and so they should be after their recent performances.

But I hope no one thinks the players are taking this Saturday lightly. There is an air down the training ground of quiet determination to set the record straight.

Of course the players and Nigel Pearson will play down any talk of revenge or pay back, and I genuinely believe they have no such agenda.

However, they do want to prove to their own supporters that what happened at the City Ground was a complete one-off.

It might be light-hearted stuff at the moment but come Saturday afternoon, City will be all business.