Carling Cup goal hero Grant Leadbitter says the players were well aware that they had let everybody down with their performance at Norwich last Sunday and didn't need Roy Keane to tell them. The 24-year-old netted the penalty which saw the Blues bounce back and beat West Brom 1-0 on Wednesday, setting up a two-legged Carling Cup semi-final against Arsenal.
Leadbitter said: "If you’ve got anything about you as a footballer you want a reaction from yourself. It didn’t need a rollicking from the manager to tell us how bad we were.
"We all knew we had let him, ourselves and the fans down. It was vital that we got back on track.”
The ex-Sunderland man says the squad are still backing Keane: "We are all solidly behind the gaffer. He is always positive and drives us forward. The fact that he takes the pressure off us is a massive factor.”
Leadbitter hopes that Wednesday’s cup win can give a boost to the club’s league form: "This could be the turning point and we want to go now to get a result against Swansea because we don't want to be dropping down that league, we want to be getting in touch with the top six again.
"We want to be in the play-off places. We had a very good start in the first 10 games, but we have let that slip over the past month or so.
"Everyone in the dressing room is disappointed and we want to get back to winning ways on Saturday to get a little run going again."
Longer term, the midfielder is looking forward to Arsenal’s visit to Portman Road: "The first leg at home will be good for our fans and we can get a full house. It is something our fans need.
"This is what football is all about - you want to play the top teams. I want to go on to be a top player, and play against the top players in the country - that is what the boys are looking forward to do."
Leadbitter has already scored against Arsenal, a 25-yarder for Sunderland at the Stadium of Light in October 2008, the midfielder subsequently kissing the spot on the pitch where his father's ashes had been scattered.
That match ended in a draw and Leadbitter hopes to go one better with the Blues: "I played for Sunderland against Arsenal and scored in a 1-1 draw but I’ve yet to be on the winning side against them. They are one of the best footballing teams in the world but we will give it our best shot.”