Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has admitted that his side played "very badly" during this afternoon's slender 2-1 victory against Sheffield Wednesday.

The Citizens required a late James Milner goal to secure their passage into the fourth round of the FA Cup after the Championship outfit had initially taken a lead into half time.

It was a frustrating afternoon for the Premier League challengers on the whole, and Pellegrini admits that fatigue may have played a factor in their underwhelming performance.

"We did not play well," he told BBC Sport. "It was our fourth game in 10 days so I think we were feeling a little bit tired and I think when you are playing a team from a different division the motivation is different.

"We played very badly, we didn't keep the ball and we didn't play the way we normally do. One of the most pleasing things about the way we have played in the last month is that we have continued winning, even without any recognised strikers, but playing the way we have, we've still been able to score goals."

City return to action next weekend when they take on Everton at Goodison Park.