Manchester City defender Micah Richards has hailed his club's vast improvement under Sven-Goran Eriksson ahead of their penultimate game of the season at Anfield on Sunday.

With Eriksson apparently destined for the sack at the end of the season, Richards paid tribute to the shrewd signings and excellent team spirit which have helped the Swede transform City into a top-10 team.

A number of senior City players are said to have considered boycotting the club's close season tour of the Far East at the end of this month in protest at the way Eriksson has been treated.

Richards said: "We've been quality this season and finishing in the top 10 is nothing to argue about.

"We have bought players who believed we could do it and I think we have been very good as a unit."