Hamann: End the in-fighting

Hamann would rather discuss City's bid to dent United's title challenge in Saturday's Manchester derby than the squabbling and speculation that have crept into the dressing room and boardroom in recent months.

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But the man who was first up for Liverpool in the penalty shoot-out against AC Milan two years ago is not one to duck an issue, either.

Hamann, 33, admits the events surrounding Barton's suspension and almost certain departure were the worst possible preparation for facing Sir Alex Ferguson's side on Saturday lunchtime.

"The last thing we needed was a distraction," he said. "There are always things going on in training.

"It shouldn't happen, but it has happened in the past and it will happen again. We've got to stick together and try to get the best possible result on Saturday.

"Obviously, we don't want United to win the title at our ground. The way they're playing at the moment, they can be electric. But if we play for each other then who knows?"

Playing for each other has not been City's strong suit this season.

The Dabo incident came on the back of Barton's criticism of manager Stuart Pearce's foreign signings, a touchy subject already broached by captain Richard Dunne in March.

It is unlikely Hamann, who has endured an injury-hit season since arriving last summer, was one of the players they had in mind, but the German midfielder admits airing such issues in public is unlikely to help team spirit.

"I've always been a strong believer that these things should be kept within the camp," he said.

"Blaming players for certain things has never helped. Sometimes you've got to be careful and bite your tongue."

The speculation over Pearce's future and talk of a takeover by Ray Ranson or former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra is a little harder to keep quiet, but Hamann says simply: "If the club are taken over it's nothing to do with the players. If a new manager comes in it's a board decision, nothing to do with us.

"I don't want the manager to go because I think he's done a good job. We've only scored 10 goals at home and he's got to shoulder the responsibility but he can't score the goals himself."

Maybe it is the economics course he has started recently, but Hamann takes a businesslike view of such matters.

It is why he has no hard feelings towards Rafael Benitez for the way his seven years at Anfield ended.

"I had another year on my contract but it was my decision. The manager told me he wanted to play Stevie Gerrard more in the middle and I might not get the games I expected.

"You have to accept it because he's not there to do anybody any favours. Rafa was always straight with me.

"My heart still supports Liverpool and always will. If I could have stayed another three or four years it would have been perfect, but it wasn't to be."

Instead, Hamann joined City in the summer after briefly signing for Bolton, whose disappointment at seeing their new recruit disappear from under their noses was cushioned by a £400,000 fee.

"It wasn't pretty," admits the one-time Newcastle player. "After a few days I just realised it wasn't the right move for me.

"I made my mind up too quickly because I'd been at Liverpool a long time. I made a mistake. I phoned Sam Allardyce. He wasn't happy, understandably, but didn't shout or swear — at least not until after he put the phone down!"

Returning to Anfield on Tuesday to see Liverpool beat Chelsea and book another Champions League Final date with AC Milan has inevitably revived memories for Hamann, who came off the bench at half-time in Istanbul to help overturn the three-goal deficit and score in the shoot-out.

He will be watching from the stands in Athens later this month, but fears that Milan may be on course to avenge that famous defeat.

"If Liverpool could go straight to penalties, they would because they know Pepe Reina is one of the best penalty savers. If I was them, I'd rather have been playing United.

"Against Milan, my worry is they used up all their luck two years ago. If Milan go one or two goals up, I don't know whether it's possible to do the same thing again.

"You couldn't have written a better script. Going up for the penalty I thought: 'We should not even be here. We should be showered and on the coach with runners-up medals round our necks'.

"There are many memories but coming back to Liverpool and seeing a million fans was best."

It has not been a season of cheer for City fans but Hamann, who has another year on his contract and would like two more after that, offers some hope.

"Next year is going to be different," he promised. "People talk about a sleeping giant, but not every giant sleeps all the time."