ROBBIE FOWLER is determined to let his boots do his talking for him this season.

And he wants them to shout loudest where they can do him the most good - on the pitch and the Carrington training ground.

The Manchester City striker, who is locked in a four-way battle for a starting berth against Fulham in a fortnight's time, is slowly rediscovering the swagger that is such an essential part of his game.

A wonderfully struck goal combined with patches of sublime interplay at Hull on Wednesday night had manager Kevin Keegan purring and Fowler himself delighted that some of the essential confidence on which his game is based is seeping back.

At first glance 29-year-old Fowler, holder of one of the top three places in the Premiership's all-time top goal-scoring list, and possessor of numerous medals and England caps, is not an obvious candidate for a chronic lack of self-belief.

However, there are precious few players who take their craft more seriously than Fowler and who shrink so quickly at unwarranted criticism from his own supporters.

Determination

There will be no shouting from the rooftops this season from Fowler about what he hopes to achieve but there is a steely determination that, given a decent run in the side, he will turn the heads of the remaining doubters - none of whom have ever questioned his effort.

"The first game was a hard game for us against Bury and I seem to be the muggins who gets all the stick in the papers but at Hull I felt sharper but I don't want to say too much about myself like `this is the season for me' because then it is easy for people to shoot me down," he ventured.

"The game the other night was a definite step up for me. Confidence-wise I felt much better. I think it is clear for people to see that I am a player that thrives on confidence and when things don't go my way, that drops a bit.

"You can refer to my goal scoring record and successes in the past but I think every season is a fresh one and what you have achieved or haven't achieved in the past goes out of the window.

"The way I look at it what I have done in the past is not nearly as important as what is coming in the future and that means scoring goals and making goals for Manchester City.

"Nicolas (Anelka) and Paulo (Wanchope) were in the side at the end of the season and my job is to get myself in there if I can.

"I am sure everyone is starting with a clean sheet as far as the manager is concerned and I doubt that he will pick his side purely on the basis of performances in pre-season games.

"It is important to work hard and show that sharpness in training on a day-to-day basis."

Instincts

Fowler will sit out tonight's trip to Wolves as he hones those natural predator's instincts still further at the Blues Carrington headquarters and will then return for the trip to Reading on Monday night when Anelka is pencilled in to make his first appearance of pre-season following a foot injury.

The Liverpudlian believes that City have approached the build-up to the start of the Premiership in the correct fashion and that the signs are promising both on and off the field.

"The first two games were not as ideal as we would have liked," he observed. "We would have preferred to have won them comfortably but the emphasis is on fitness.

"We weren't up with the pace of it at Bury or Doncaster but at Hull everyone, including the lads who came on, looked as fit as we have for while. Every time we went forward we looked as though we would cause Hull problems.

"It has been a busy pre-season with two sessions of training each day and we are benefiting from that.

"Straight from the word go we have put the emphasis on team building and hard work. At Hull we all worked hard for one another and that is a promising sign going into the season.

"We had the day out white water rafting in Wales together and that was a good exercise.

"We have always mixed well as a squad but it gave a few of the younger lads and the new players a bit more time to gel away from the training ground.

Positive

"It was a positive experience for everyone involved."

Keegan, too, has been upbeat about preparations and was particularly delighted with Fowler's contribution to the 4-0 win at the Kingston Communication Stadium.

"I am pleased with the way Robbie is working," said the manager.

"At Hull on Wednesday night he really put some sweat on his shirt. It was the sort of contest, because we had good possession and because people were on top of their games, that Robbie could get in some good positions and show what he is all about.

"At Doncaster he was never able to do that. He will never lose that quick football brain of his but, like the rest, he has to get fitter and sharper.

"We are not playing him tonight at Wolves and I have told him that we are going to give him three or four days of training to sharpen him up a bit more - not extra training because he has worked as hard as anyone in pre-season.

"Apart from his goal at Hull, Robbie's general play was excellent and we want more of that."

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