Manchester City's declineMalcolm Allison, one of Stuart Pearce's predecessors at Manchester City, used to say that you were never a real manager until you had been sacked.

There are plenty of people who hoped Pearce would be the exception but the former England captain is coming under intense scrutiny after the latest setback in what is threatening to become another sorry chapter in the club's chequered history.

Football is an unpredictable business and there is rich irony that the vultures are starting to circle only six months since City's live-wire manager was on the Football Association shortlist to succeed Sven-Goran Eriksson. The facts, however, are stark. In 2006 Pearce has overseen a meagre six Premiership victories, and only one away from the City of Manchester stadium.

Their one win this season came against Arsenal at the end of last month but they have already been beaten by Chelsea, Reading and Blackburn Rovers, while Wednesday's ignominious League Cup defeat at Chesterfield means that, going back to last season, they have lost 13 of their last 16 games.

It is a record of failure that has left Pearce acknowledging he is under pressure. City now embark on a run of five games, beginning at home to West Ham tomorrow, that could define his future. His team also host Sheffield United and Middlesbrough, with trips to Everton and Wigan Athletic, and at the end of that period there will be a much clearer picture of whether Pearce can turn the season around.

"Even though I think I work pretty hard at the moment, I'm going to need to work even harder than before," said Pearce. "I've got to turn things round and find a way to instill some confidence into these players. We have to have a close look at ourselves, the coaching methods and everything. When you get a couple of bad results, you have to strip everything down to the bare bones and try to analyse everything."

Losing at Chesterfield has magnified Pearce's difficulties in a way that going out of the competition to another League One side, Doncaster Rovers, never did last season. The 2-1 defeat at Saltergate led to audible dissent from City's supporters, with one fan involved in an exchange of words with Joey Barton.

Pearce lost only one of his first 13 matches as Kevin Keegan's successor but, in all competitions, he has since experienced defeat in 24 out of 41 games. The club are 17th in the Premiership and his four strikers - Darius Vassell, Paul Dickov, Bernado Corradi and Georgios Samaras - have not managed a single league goal between them.

Those statistics might be enough for some club chairmen - Jeremy Peace and Ken Bates spring to mind - to press the panic button. Pearce is fortunate in that respect because he has a supportive chairman in John Wardle and backing from chief executive Alistair Mackintosh. There are plenty of supporters, too, who want to stay loyal to a former England captain whose sleeves-up commitment make him one of the most respected men in the game.

An hour after the final whistle on Wednesday, one fan approached Pearce at the end of his media interviews. "I just want to let you know all the supporters are behind you," he told the manager. "Thank you very much," Pearce replied.

There are mitigating circumstances. Pearce's hopes of a successful season were undermined by David James and Andy Cole, two of his most important players, announcing out of the blue they wanted to join Portsmouth. City have also had a restricted transfer budget as they try to recover from the excesses of Keegan's reign. On top of that, Ben Thatcher's forearm smash on Pedro Mendes has deprived Pearce of a reliable defender until October 30th.

However, there are legitimate questions about the players he has brought in. City's financial position is far too precarious for them to spend £6 million on a striker, as Pearce did with Samaras, unless goals are virtually guaranteed. Samaras scored at Chesterfield but he began the season on the left of midfield and was so ineffectual he subsequently lost his place.

Corradi has also had a difficult start, including a red card on his debut. Pearce might be one of football's more engaging characters but, as Allison could tell him, the only thing that matters is results.