Roberto Mancini expects the battle for fourth place to last the remainder of the season.

Goals from Roque Santa Cruz and Carlos Tevez earned Manchester City an impressive 2-1 win at Fulham, to lift them two points behind Tottenham Hotspur with a game in hand.

It promises to be a mighty battle for the fourth and final UEFA Champions League place in the Premier League, and Mancini is delighted to leave Craven Cottage with three valuable points.

“We deserved to win the game," said the Italian coach. “This was a great win for us because this is a difficult ground to come to, not many teams win here.

"We must think game after game. We have won this but on Wednesday we have a hard match against Everton. There will be a fight until the end of the season."

Get all the latest news on your club. Visit 360 Football, the best football news aggregator on the web!