Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has admitted that failing to qualify for the Champions League would be a "disaster" that could see him sacked this summer.
Having bowed out of the title race after winning just four of their last 12 games, a top-four finish is now the priority as the reigning Premier League champions bid to salvage something from a trophyless season.
Speculation is rife that the Chilean will be fired regardless, and Pellegrini, whose side sit fourth by four points ahead of Liverpool, admits that the decision to sack him will be easier if they do not qualify.
"You are wrong if you think that, at this club, you are out if you don't win the title," he is quoted as saying by the Daily Mail.
[But] If we miss out [on the Champions League] then maybe it will be different because that would not be the same thing.
"If that happens, the analysis of the season will be different. Not to play in the Champions League is a disaster."
Pellegrini could reportedly be replaced by Borussia Dortmund's Jurgen Klopp, who is leaving Signal Iduna Park this summer.
City host West Ham United at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
Shane Callaghan
