Manchester City boss Manuel Pellegrini was upbeat despite his side's 2-1 defeat at the hands of Arsenal on Tuesday night.
The Citizens were second best throughout the whole game but raised their level in the second part of the second half and went close to salvaging a draw at the Emirates.
And the Chilean says the second half performance is the way his team should play in future games.
"I am thinking about the future not the past," Pellegrini said.
"We have 63 points more to win. I think the way we played in the second half we are going to be an important team in fighting for the title.
"In the second half we took more risks, we created a lot of chances, we had more possession, we had lots of shots but in a match this important you can't make mistakes.
"We played better than Arsenal but for the second goal we made a mistake and that was decisive. I am very proud of the attitude of the team though. We kept fighting until the end and never gave up.
"I think that it was important for Sergio to return to the team. Maybe he needs a few more matches to return to his form but it was important for the team that he played tonight" said Pellegrini."
