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Manuel Pellegrini: 'First month of season is easiest'

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini warns that the season will only get more difficult for his table-topping side once European and domestic cup competitions begin.

Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini has warned that things will only get more difficult for the club after the international break as Premier League fixtures begin to be juggled with Champions League and domestic cup commitments.

City are the only team with a 100% record from their first four league games of the season, and are yet to even concede a goal as they enjoy a three-point gap at the top of the table.

However, the Chilean insists that the true test of his pace-setting side will come when domestic football returns after this weekend's international break.

"Football changes so easily," he told The Mirror. "You cannot know what will happen in the next month. Now we have an international break. On the one hand, it is good to stop, because we have a lot of injured players. On the other hand, we are playing well, so we want to continue.

"For the opening month, we have played just one game a week, but when we come back, the Champions League starts, and the Capital One Cup starts [for City], too. So we will be playing eight games each month.

"There are a lot of things that can make football change. That is why it is important to start well and to know why we are playing this way."

City can open up a minimum of a four-point gap just five weeks after the start of the season if they beat second-placed Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park on Saturday, September 12.

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Manchester City's Brazilian midfielder Fernandinho (L) celebrates after scoring his team's second goal during the English Premier League football match between Manchester City and Watford at The Etihad Stadium in Manchester, north west England on August 2
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1Liverpool108111961325
2Manchester CityMan City1072121111023
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest10541147719
4Chelsea105322012818
5Arsenal105321711618
6Aston Villa105321715218
7Tottenham HotspurSpurs1051422111116
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton104421714316
9Fulham104331413115
10Bournemouth104331312115
11Newcastle UnitedNewcastle104331010015
12Brentford104151920-113
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd10334912-312
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham103251319-611
15Leicester CityLeicester102441418-410
16Everton102351017-79
17Crystal Palace10145813-57
18Ipswich TownIpswich100551021-115
19Southampton10118719-124
20Wolverhampton WanderersWolves100371427-133


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