Vieira ready to prove he's a better player now on return

Vieira will make his Manchester City debut against Blackburn at Eastlands tonight providing he recovers from the niggling calf injury he picked up in his final game for Inter Milan last week.

The former Arsenal captain found it difficult enough to impress Jose Mourinho in Italy, so the perceived wisdom is that he will struggle to adjust to life back in England, where the pace tends to be far higher.

But Vieira thinks the immense talent he had when he played under Arsene Wenger has been improved by his exposure to Serie A.

"I am a better player for the experiences I have had," said Vieira. "You get better with experience and age and I have been really lucky to play at big clubs.

"I have learned a lot around big-name players and I have come back to the Premier League a better player than I used to be."

Vieira accepts he will not silence the doubters with words alone.

Performances are going to be key, although Roberto Mancini has already declared his faith in the Frenchman by stressing he expects his first signing as City chief to be a regular member of his starting line-up.

While the former Juventus star is a familiar face, having won three league titles with the Gunners and established himself as one of the fiercest Premier League enforcers, Mancini is largely an unknown quantity.

The City manager has already earned a lot of plaudits for the mature way he handled the furore surrounding Mark Hughes' dismissal.

And, with three wins from three games in charge, and no goals conceded, Mancini could hardly have made a better start.

"Mancini is a winner," declared Vieira. "He is a really ambitious man. He came here because he knows he can achieve something.

"He will do everything for the team to be successful and win games. There are similarities between Mancini and Arsene Wenger.

"They both like to work on the pitch and like to be next to the players.

"They manage players and believe in communication. That is really good and I regard it as a compliment that I am the first player Mancini has brought to City."

Vieira's experience at the highest level should help City keep a cool head when the pressure gets ratcheted up towards the end of the season.

Blackburn manager Sam Allardyce thinks Mancini will have made the task of tightening his back line an immediate priority, while his own problems are at the opposite end.

"We've not scored enough – it's a big worry," he said as his side find themselves just three points away from the relegation zone.