LONDON (REUTERS) - Manchester City have "let themselves down" this season and the squad have had "a lot of honest conversations" since the 4-2 defeat at Manchester United nine days ago, says England goalkeeper Joe Hart.

The English Premier League champions have had a disappointing campaign under manager Manuel Pellegrini and are down in fourth position, 12 points behind runaway leaders Chelsea with five matches left to play.

"We are not in the place where we wanted to be, we wanted to be really challenging for the title like we've done in previous years," Hart said on Tuesday.

"We've got to be honest and win these last games and see where it takes us. We've let ourselves down at key moments.

"There's been a lot of reflection, a lot of honest conversations. It was a tough result to take."