B767 CREW WAS ASKED TO DO A XBLEED ENG START IN NON COMPLIANCE WITH THE MEL THAT DEACTIVATED THE PNEUMATIC XFEED VALVE CLOSED.

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MET BY FLT MGR UPON CHK-IN AT ZZZ OPS; INQUIRING IF I HAD ANY PROBS DOING A XBLEED START DUE TO APU PNEUMATICS PROB. I HAD NO PROB; NOR ANY INFO ABOUT THE PROB ON THE MAINT RELEASE; JUST AN 'APU BLEED VALVE' NOTATION ON THE FLT PLAN FORECAST. DID NOT HAVE TIME TO PULL IT UP DUE TO LOCATION OF OPS AND NEED TO GET TO ACFT FOR AN ON-TIME. MET AT ACFT BY MAINT SUPVR AGAIN ASKING IF I HAD A PROB WITH XBLEED START. UPON FURTHER REVIEW OF THE MEL PLACARD; HOWEVER; I REALIZED THAT THEY HAD DEFERRED THE BLEED VALVE CLOSED. YET THE MECHS WANTED ME TO USE APU AIR TO START #2 THEN XBLEED START #1; A VIOLATION OF THE DEFERRAL. SO I CALLED FOR A GND START. THEY HAD WANTED TO AVOID THAT TO SAVE BUCKS AND A DELAY. UPON DOING MY FLOW; I NOTICED MAINT WAS USING APU AIR TO AIR CONDITION THE ACFT; AND HAD NOT COMPLIED WITH THE DEFERRAL MAINT PROC. THEY EXPLAINED THAT THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THE APU; JUST THAT A VALVE WOULDN'T OPEN TO ALLOW #1 TO START WHEN USING APU AIR; XBLEEDS WERE OK. I TOLD THEM I WAS UNABLE TO START EITHER ENG WITH THE APU PNEUMATICS ACCORDING TO THE CURRENT DEFERRAL. I FELT PRESSURE TO COMPLY WITH THEIR WISHES; AND FELT ANGRY ABOUT THEIR COMPLETE INDIFFERENCE TO THE DEFERRAL PROC. WE GND STARTED #1 AND XBLED #2. UPON ARR SFO; THE FO HAD BEEN QUERIED ABOUT 'MY PROB.'