Manchester City a work in progress for Barry

Manchester City FC midfielder Gareth Barry promised there is more to come from his side following their clinical 2-0 UEFA Europa League Group A victory against FC Salzburg on Thursday.

Roberto Mancini made six changes to the side that drew with Blackburn Rovers FC at the weekend, and Barry says the squad are still gelling following a number of new arrivals during the summer. "We had a different team and a different formation again today and we've come away with a good victory," said the 29-year-old. "The longer we stay together, the better we'll become."

Despite taking an early lead thanks to David Silva's first goal for the club, the English outfit had to retain focus throughout as Salzburg refused to roll over, something that came as no surprise to the England midfielder. "We got the type of game we expected. Any away game in Europe is tough; the tempo is going to be high. We're delighted to get the three points and a clean sheet as well."

Salzburg goalkeeper Gerhard Tremmel ensured the deficit was not extended before the break with fine saves to deny Carlos Tévez and Silva. Yet he claimed the latter's eighth-minute opener had already scuppered the hosts' hopes of frustrating their prosperous counterparts. "It ruined our game plan," said the 31-year-old. "We wanted to keep it tight at the back but the early goal played into their hands. Still, we'll learn from it and we'll be stronger going forward."

Brazilian Jô sealed the points for City when he tucked in the rebound after a Tévez shot on 63 minutes, and Barry believes the goal was just reward for the rangy frontman's endeavor. "Jô's been fantastic. He's had a tough time since he's been at the club, being loaned out and so forth, but this season he's worked really hard, scored a lot of goals in pre-season and shown the manager he can take his chance."

Defeat leaves Salzburg with an uphill struggle in what many consider the most challenging UEFA Europa League group, though midfielder Franz Schiemer is already looking ahead to the trip to KKS Lech Poznań on 30 September. "Beating Lech Poznań is well within our grasp, even if they did get an excellent result in Turin," he said after the Polish champions drew 3-3 at Juventus, City's next opponents.