Manager Sven-Goran Eriksson may not be the only one whose long-term future is under threat at Manchester City.

The absolute capitulation of his team in the second half of Sunday's 8-1 demolition at Middlesbrough will have raised serious doubts about a number of players.

Admittedly City were down to 10 men after the 15th-minute dismissal of captain Richard Dunne but without his leadership the whole side just folded after the break despite not really being put under that much pressure.

Even Eriksson, who is waiting to discover whether club owner Thaksin Shinawatra will carry out his thinly-disguised threat to sack the former England coach after just one season in charge, admitted his players gave up.

"I think we were in the game until they scored to make it 3-0. After that we didn't have the mental strength to come back and it was only one way after that," said the Swede.

"There are no excuses at all. After 3-0 we were somewhere else, not here.

"It is bad for everyone. It is bad for the fans, bad for the club, for our image - everything. It is embarrassing for everyone.

"It was one of those days where Middlesbrough scored beautiful goals and it is not very often you can say that.

"I don't think our goalkeeper could do anything about any of the goals they scored. It was not his fault but it was a bad day and no goalkeeper likes to concede eight."

Immediately after the match Eriksson said he did not know whether the continuing uncertainty over his position had an effect on his players or their performance.

But he did call for a swift resolution to allow the club to move forward.

"It must be resolved. I think we have been standing totally still (since speculation about his future began)," he said.

"If you think about the future and [new] players coming in it is not good."

Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate had his own view on City's abject display from the opposing dug-out.

"Once we got the third [goal] that really broke their spirit then all of the circumstances surrounding them weighed heavily on them," he said.

Southgate, who said he had spoken to Eriksson and his assistant Tord Grip prior to the game but had not mentioned the Swede's situation, had some sympathy for his City counterpart and his now strained relationship with Thaksin.

The former England defender, by contrast, has the full backing of chairman Steve Gibson and benefits from the now legendary support he gives his managers in almost any situation.

Boro had only secured their Premier League survival the previous weekend but there had been no suggestion Southgate was under pressure either from within the club or among the fans.

And from his position of strength Southgate felt able to offer an opinion on Eriksson's bizarre situation, considering he has led them to their best Premier League finish since the 2004-05 season - when they were eighth - and a likely place in the UEFA Cup via the Fair Play League.

"It is a bizarre one," he said.

"If you have done the sort of job they (Eriksson and Grip) have you can walk away with your head held high and it is perhaps a situation you are better off out of."

More news from SportingLife.com