Stuart Pearce has admitted there is 'no hiding place' for him or his ailing Manchester City stars.

The pressure on Pearce has increased after club chairman John Wardle branded the 4-0 defeat at Wigan on Saturday 'an embarrassment'.

Although Wardle's ire was mainly directed at the players, Pearce was responsible for bringing some of the worst offenders - notably Bernardo Corradi, Dietmar Hamann and Georgios Samaras - into the club.

The former England skipper accepts he is not immune from crutiny. And, looking ahead to Monday's televised encounter with Middlesbrough, by which time City could be perilously close to the relegation zone, Pearce accepts drastic improvement is required.

"There is no hiding place and no shirking place for us as a management team or as players," he said

"I am a passionate man. I have been involved in the game a long time. I am acutely aware of the criticism that comes with a performance that is not good enough - I take it on the chin.

"If you are saying 'Do I enjoy getting beaten 4-0?' I think you know the answer before you have even asked the question.

"But I won't run up and down and scream and pull my head out in front of the media. The players will know exactly what is expected of them come the next match."

Pearce admitted he had a huge amount of sympathy for the City fans who made the short trip to Wigan and launched a chorus of 'You're not fit to wear the shirt', as they saw their team slump to a humiliating loss.

"I would probably have said the same thing if I had been sat in their seats," he said. "But it is not my job to say that. It is my job to lift the spirits of a team and win the next game.

"The fans have always backed this football club from start to finish. It is down to me to say to the players 'You have to match the passion that the supporters have for this football club'."