Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini expects to hold onto unsettled striker Craig Bellamy.

Mancini was quick to pull Bellamy aside yesterday morning to try to quell the anxiety the Wales striker - a key weapon in weeks to come - was feeling in the wake of Mark Hughes's dismissal.

"I lost a friend as a manager once," Mancini said. "I know how that feels but Craig is OK now. He will be fine.

"Today was my first day at the training ground and I did not have a problem with the players. Training was good.

"It's normal players should feel bad when their manager goes. I hope they will feel that way about me when I leave in many years' time.

"I told the players to believe in themselves. They are great players and we can achieve our targets if we work hard together. If you manage in Italy, pressure is normal, so that won't be a problem for me. I stayed at Inter for four years, which was a record.

"My job is to work hard every day, improve the team and to win more games than Mark Hughes did."