Source: Team_Talk
Hughes does not fear Gunners
City welcome the Gunners to Eastlands with sights set on breaking the stranglehold of the Big Four, which also includes Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United.
And after beating Arsenal in Manchester last season, the Welshman is adamant that his side know they can compete against Arsene Wenger's team.
He said in the Daily Mirror: "Arsenal are an outstanding side and if you allow them to dictate play and get their tails up they have the ability to hurt you.
"They have outstanding individual talents within a way of playing that allows them to create chances, and if they get it right on the day they can really hurt you.
"Ourselves, United and Chelsea are the only British teams to have beaten Arsenal in the past 10 months, which shows the consistency of results they are able to achieve.
"That's what we're aiming to do. We have great respect for what they can do when they're in full flow.
"But they know we will be a test, certainly at home, where we were outstanding against them last season when we won 3-0.
"We were very good value for that win, so we go into this game with no apprehension, because we know we can compete against them."
Hughes has benefited from the considerable riches of club owner Sheikh Mansour when transforming City into a genuine top-flight force.
But he concedes that it may take more time for City to be able to challenge consistently throughout the course of a season.
"We're talking about a short period of time in terms of what we've done," said Hughes.
"So we've done really well in changing people's perceptions to the point where some see us as a real threat to the so-called Big Four.
"We're comfortable with that, but those teams have been playing high-profile games for years and years at a high level, week-in, week-out."
