NIGEL DE JONG has assured Blues fans that the players are hurting just as much as their supporters over the 3-1 home defeat by Fulham that dealt a huge blow to Mark Hughes' bid to snatch seventh spot in the Premier League.
The City of Manchester Stadium was stunned after Stephen Ireland's marvellous opener on Sunday was followed by an unexpected Fulham fightback that wrecked the Blues' storming run of six successive home League victories.
Dutch midfielder De Jong admitted: "We tried to do our best but in the second half it all went wrong. I'm gutted, we all are - two wins in a row and you can be seventh, so it's tough when you lose that kind of game at home.
"That's football, but it still hurts. You put every effort into the game, so of course it hurts - we don't set out to lose on purpose, nobody does, and we need to repay the fans by showing our true quality now.
"We have a huge game now against Hamburg on Thursday in the UEFA Cup and it's very important to show the fans what we can do. We're hurting now, but we have to be positive and make a fresh start from today."
Sunday's defeat rounded off the worst week of the season for manager Hughes' injury-hit team, having been outplayed by Arsenal at The Emirates and then beaten 3-1 in the first leg of the UEFA quarter-final in Hamburg.
Fulham even evoked a touch of deja vu for suffering Blues fans. Stevie Ireland scored first in Germany but City lost 3-1, then the midfielder hit another superb opener on Sunday only for lightning to strike twice.
With the Blues' season now under threat - and key players still battling against injury - Nigel added: "Of course it is going to be a huge test of our character, and we have a lot of young guys in the squad.
"We have to get our thoughts right and our focus right for the Hamburg game. We have to show what we are made of now, show the right mentality out on the pitch. Everybody has to give everything for the team."
Peter Ferguson
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