Following last weekend’s Continental Cup triumph at Sunderland, the Blues are seeking their eighth successive win and travel to Meadow Lane full of confidence, eager to close the gap on FA Women’s Super League leaders Chelsea.
Nick Cushing’s side sit three points below the Londoners but have a game in hand - and, in such a rich vein of form, are ready to fight to the end in the title race.
Though while many have tipped the Continental Cup holders to finish the season top of the WSL table, the City boss has warned his side not to get too ahead of themselves in their battle for a first domestic crown.
He told mcfc.co.uk: “Results have been good - we’re on a bit of a run - and we just can’t wait for the next game.
“There’s a feeling of confidence because we’ve won seven in seven and we’ve played Chelsea, Arsenal and Sunderland who currently make up the top three.
“We’ve put ourselves in the run-in but that doesn’t mean we’re going to win it. If we keep playing the way we have been, we stand a chance.
“We take every game as it comes but what’s pleasing me most is that we look like a Manchester City team now. We’re playing free-flowing, attacking football and people are enjoying watching the games.”
When asked of the secret behind his side’s recent success, Cushing asserted he knew the Blues would hit top form eventually - and added that they are now enjoying every minute of doing so.
He continued: “The players are happy because of the performances we’ve been putting in. We’re really starting to dominate teams now by getting the ball down, putting some passes together and creating chances.
“The performances before the mid-season break were fairly similar to those that were put in before it but we weren’t scoring enough goals.
“I think the World Cup has helped - the players have brought back a lot of enthusiasm and positive energy - but we’ve always believed in the way we want to play here.
“We’ve improved every week on the training pitch and we’ve started scoring which has been the key thing for us. We’e turned draws into wins and we just want to keep playing games now.”
Scottish international Jennifer Beattie echoed her manager’s sentiments in her preview of Sunday’s encounter, agreeing the Blues must remain grounded and take each game at a time - starting with this weekend’s tricky test in Nottingham.
She declared: “We are very confident but we certainly don’t have the mentality that we just need to turn up to win. Our preparation is always strong because we want to keep the momentum going.
“We have been in really good form since the World Cup. We have got almost everyone in the squad fighting fit and full of confidence.
“Notts County have done really well. Getting to the Women’s FA Cup final was a massive achievement and they have strength in depth.
“I don’t think a defeat would rule Notts County out of the title race. I don’t think you can rule anyone out at the moment.”
Sunday’s clash kicks-off at 2pm at Meadow Lane, NG2 3HJ. We’ll have live updates on Twitter as well as a full match report and post-match reaction on the website shortly after full-time.
