DON'T BELIEVE YOUR HYPE; MANC v FULHAM BARCLAYS PREM, TOMORROW, 3PM.

Byline: DAVID McDONNELL

MARK HUGHES has told Micah Richards he must knuckle down and stop believing his own hype if he wants to fulfil his potential.

Manchester City defender Richards became England's youngest-ever defender at 18 and looked set for a glittering future for club and country.

But he has been frozen out by England boss Fabio Capello and struggled to hold down a starting place at City under Hughes, who issued a stark warning to the 21-year-old.

"At times people forget how young Micah is and that he's still learning his trade," said Hughes. "He had a lot of success very early on in his career and sometimes for young players they feel that's how it's going to be all the time.

"There's always going to be a time when that judgement of you as a player plateaus out and people start looking at you with a more critical eye.

"That's what has happened to Micah. But he's working harder and he knows he's not the finished product yet.

"We work hard in training every day and set certain standards everybody has to get to. No-one here is allowed to ease off.

"We ask for intensity in their work and if Micah's not running around on a daily basis he certainly gets reminded of that."

Richards will deputise for suspended right-back Pablo Zabaleta against Fulham, but can forget any chance of an England recall for the World Cup, according to the City manager.

"What Micah needs to do is establish himself in our team and produce good performances over a long period," said Hughes (right).

"It's difficult for Micah because it seems the England World Cup squad, barring a few surprises at the end, looks set in stone now."

William HILL

MAN CITY v FULHAM: 4-7 City; 7-1 Fulham; 3-1 Draw. First scorer: 10-3 Adebayor; 9-2 Bellamy

Freephone: 0800 444040

CAPTION(S):

FACING UP TO FACTS Richards must start producing the goods again