Distin in fitness race

Last updated : 14 March 2006 By Ben Collins
Distin missed Saturday's 2-1 defeat at Portsmouth with a groin injury, meaning Sun Jihai came into the Blues defence, but manager Stuart Pearce is hopeful his skipper will return for the fifth-round replay.

Trevor Sinclair (concussion) and Joey Barton (ankle) are both expected to be
fit despite minor problems, while Albert Riera is back in the squad after being left out of the 16 on Saturday.

The winners will face either West Ham or Bolton in the quarter-finals next week. City haven't made the FA Cup quarter-finals since 1993, when we were beaten 4-2 in an eventful game with Spurs.

Micah Richards' late equaliser at Villa Park kept City's Cup hopes alive, and
midfielder Claudio Reyna has said that City have an added incentive to finally end our long wait for a Cup.

``The manager set high standards for the team and individuals since he took
over,'' said Reyna. ``One of the team goals is to get into Europe, so the Villa
game represents a big opportunity for us.

``Our home form has been good recently, so, while Villa are similar to us in
the sense that on some days they perform really well and on others they don't, it is definitely a winnable game.''

Tickets are still available at £20 for adults and £5 for kids/over 65s.