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Nick Wright assesses Manuel Pellegrinis Manchester City legacy as he prepares to make way for Pep Guardiola... Manuel Pellegrinis Etihad Stadium farewell rather summed up the mood at Manchester City as they approach the end of his final season in charge. Boos greeted the 2-2 draw with Arsenal as disgruntled fans headed straight for the exits, and when the manager and his players re-emerged from the dressing room, they were met by swathes of empty seats.It was a sad way for the Chilean to say goodbye after three years at the helm, but the exodus was also an understandable reaction to yet another setback in a season in which City have fallen a long way short of expectations. Manuel Pellegrini waved goodbye to City fans on Sunday after his final game at the Etihad Mercifully for City, their Champions League qualification fate is back in their hands after Manchester Uniteds 3-2 defeat to West Ham at Upton Park. They can guarantee a top-four finish by beating Swansea at the Liberty Stadium on the final day, but even a top-four finish will not mask the sense of deflation about how things have panned out.How did it come to this? The Capital One Cup triumph over Liverpool ensures the season has at least yielded silverware, but City could not have imagined the collapse that would follow the announcement of Pep Guardiolas appointment in February. Pellegrinis men were just three points behind leaders Leicester at the time. The gap now stands at 15. Manuel Pellegrini and Yaya Toure pose with the Premier League trophy after Man Citys 2013/14 title triumph Even the first Champions League semi-final in their history felt like an anti-climax. Here was an opportunity for Pellegrinis men to prove they belong on the grandest stage, but their meek surrender at the Bernabeu showed that, for all the investment, they are still no closer to the European elite.Pellegrini inherited a team that could win things, said Sky Sports pundit Graeme Souness on Sunday. Then he spent £200m net, now he is leaving and how much further down the road is this team than when he walked in? Are they better? Have they stagnated? Or are they worse? What do the challengers need? Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Man Utd, Man City and Tottenham - what do they need to win the title? They are awkward questions for Pellegrini, who looked well positioned to dominate English football after guiding City to the Premier League title in a stellar 2013/14 campaign. The softly-spoken Chilean succeeded in repairing a squad left fractured by his confrontational predecessor Roberto Mancini, with City pipping Liverpool and Chelsea in a thrilling title race and securing the Capital One Cup with a 3-1 win over Sunderland. Manuel Pellegrini will be replaced by current Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola this summer Delivering the first league and cup double in Citys history was an achievement for which their understated manager probably deserved greater credit. It was done in style, too. Pellegrinis men thrilled supporters with devastating attacking football, and a total of 102 goals scored ranked as the second-highest in Premier League history. In all competitions, they struck a record-breaking 156 goals, and thoughts immediately turned to the future after they wrapped up the season with 2-0 win at home to West Ham. Big teams cannot be satisfied with one title, said Pellegrini in his post-match press conference. This club and players deserve more titles. Manuel Pellegrini guided Man City to a second Capital One Cup win this season City and their ambitious owners wanted dominance, but in the end the achievements of 2013/14 have been overshadowed by disappointment. City were joint-top of the Premier League midway through Pellegrinis second year in charge, but their challenge faded in the second half of the season, and there were cup exits too. They did finish as the Premier Leagues leading scorers for the second year running as they netted 83 goals, but it was the first time since 2009/10 since they had failed to win silverware. A steady decline was in motion, and the sense of underachievement has grown this season. Not since 2008/09 have City lost 10 Premier League games in a single campaign. Man Citys Premier League decline under Pellegrini Season Won Drawn Lost Goals for Goals against Points Position 2013/14 27 5 6 102 37 86 1st 2014/15 24 7 7 83 38 79 2nd 2015/16 19 8 10 70 40 65 4th Pellegrini, of course, is not solely responsible for Citys plight, with player recruitment a constant source of frustration. Last seasons signings of Eliaquim Mangala and Wilfried Bony have not worked out, and this year Nicolas Otamendi and Raheem Sterling have also struggled to live up to their huge price-tags.But while Citys aging squad contains 11 players aged 30 or over, there is still far more quality within its ranks than their league positions suggests. Pellegrini has been unable to get the best out of them, and Citys dismal record of no wins from 10 games against the top-six opponents is a damning indictment of the man making the decisions in the dug-out. Is Laporte the answer? Athletic Bilbaos Aymeric Laporte is a Man City target. Is he the answer to their defensive woes? Pellegrini can, of course, point to the destabilising effect of the Guardiola announcement as a mitigating factor - and it certainly seems as though certain players have taken their eyes of the ball - but he cannot deny that the decline started long before February.So while Pellegrini will be fondly remembered for the moments to savour in his unforgettable first season, he leaves having failed in his task to take City to the next level. The sparse crowd that stayed for his farewell speech told a tale. Guardiola has plenty of work to do to get them to where they want to be. Also See: What do the challengers need? Is Laporte the answer? Who gets into Europe? City-Arsenal talking points Thomas Morstead Jersey . - Tom Brady and the Patriots routed the Bengals and quieted the doubters. Thomas Morstead Womens Jersey . PAUL, Minn. http://www.shoptheofficialsaints.com/Eli...-Saints-Jersey/. And though his comeback night didnt quite go to script, Bryant couldnt help reflecting on the work necessary to get back on that court -- and all the months of steady labour ahead to reclaim his game. Bryant had nine points and eight rebounds in his season debut, but Amir Johnson scored a career-high 32 points in the trade-depleted Toronto Raptors 106-94 victory over Los Angeles on Sunday night. Thomas Morstead Youth Jersey . The 49ers, 6-2 and riding a five-game winning streak following the bye week, also waived cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha and activated cornerback Eric Wright from the reserve/non-football injury list. Manningham made 42 receptions for 449 yards and one touchdown in 12 games and 10 starts last season before injuring his left knee in a loss at Seattle Dec. Wil Lutz Saints Jersey .C. -- Kurt Busch put his chances at "70 per cent" at running the Indianapolis 500 this year because of recent developments that have pushed a potential program along.Steve Sidwell scored a stunning 50-yard goal as Brighton beat Bristol City 2-0 at Ashton Gate in the Sky Bet Championship on Saturday evening. Jamie Murphy doubled the lead with a deflected effort as Chris Hughtons men won their fourth game in a row and made it four matches without conceding in a clash which will be remembered for the audacious strike by Sidwell. The result keeps the Seagulls in second place, four points behind Newcastle - who beat Cardiff 2-1 earlier in the day to maintain their lead at the top - and also means they are unbeaten in their last 10 league games. It was a frantic opening five minutes to the game, with Tammy Abraham posing the most danger with his pace and movement and the on-loan Chelsea star played a wonderful reverse pass into the path of Lee Tomlin, but he was unable to make the most of it and blasted wide. Brightons Steve Sidwell scored from the halfway line to opening the scoring against Bristol City Brighton eventually settled into the game, but it was still the Robins controlling possession, former Middlesbrough star Gary ONeil dictating proceedings in the middle of the park.But, when Korey Smith lost the ball just near the halfway line, Sidwell produced a moment of magic to put Brighton into a 13th-minute lead after winning back possession, he looked up and hit a left-footed strike past a stranded Richard ODonnell, who was well of his line for his first goal since April.The 33-year-old, formerly of Reading, Chelsea and Aston Villa, then ran to the sidelines with his team-mates to celebrate by holding up the shirt of the absent Anthony Knockaert, who was grieving following the death of his father.Despite their bright start, Bristol City were rocked by that goal and failed to recover sufficiently and several minutes later found themselves two-down courtesy of a Murphy strike. Bristol City manager Lee Johnson was critical of the way his side performed The Scotland winger - who was causing all sorts of problems on the wing - cut in from the left and after feigning to shoot, eventually did and found the bottom corner via a deflection to give Brighton complete control.ddddddddddddKnowing they needed to improve, Bristol City came out, determined to reduce the deficit and get back into the game, but Hordur Magnusson wasted an opportunity when he headed right into the arms of David Stockdale. Down the other end, Brighton were still hoping to increase their own advantage and Glenn Murray - who was leading the line well - turned superbly before finding Jiri Skalak, who could only hit a stinging drive to warm the palms of ODonnell.Veteran forward Aaron Wilbraham came on to offer some much needed support to Abraham and there was a moment of worry for Bristol City, when ONeil went down momentarily after taking a high boot to the jaw. Brighton manager Chris Hughton praised the dominant nature of his sides victory The introduction of Wilbraham was giving the Brighton defence something different to think about and he should have been awarded a penalty after he was clearly fouled by defender Shane Duffy, but the referee was not interested, despite the strikers protests.Substitute Tomer Hemed ignored the calls of his colleagues and blasted one final effort high into the stands, but it did not matter as Brighton left with the victory and Bristol City slipped out of the play-off places. Brighton vs A Villa November 18, 2016, 7:00pm Live on Get Sky Sports Get a Sky Sports pass Following the match, Brighton boss Hughton told Sky Sports that Sidwells strike had settled his sides nerves.It was one of those strikes, where as soon as he hit it, I knew it was in. It was a difficult one for the goalkeeper because it was unexpected and it was with his left foot.A wonderful opener for us and as I said, any nerves we might have had, it calmed us down. ' ' '