Source: SKY_Sports
Hughes keeps eye on Anfield
Manchester City manager Mark Hughes has admitted he will be keeping one eye on Anfield at the weekend.
City take on Fulham at Eastlands on Sunday, but title rivals Manchester United and Liverpool clash before then in what is being dubbed as a showdown match for Reds boss Rafa Benitez.
With City making a bright start to their Premier League campaign so far this season, Hughes can watch the game at Anfield in the knowledge that the result could impact his team's position in the table by the end of the weekend.
"I'm relishing the fact the other two are playing each other," he said.
"It's a big fixture in the sporting calendar, and irrespective of our ambitions this year, everybody looks at that game because it's a big one and there's huge focus on it.
"Maybe this year we're looking at it with a different view and with renewed interest.
"You hope the teams in and around you stumble so you can take full advantage of that.
"Obviously, in years gone by, we've been more used to mid-table teams and the like, and looking at their results.
Improvement
"Maybe now we can say we're looking at the top teams around us and hoping they're going to fail."
City currently lie in fifth in the league, with 17 points from eight games, and Hughes believes the monopoly of the 'big four' at the top of the table in recent seasons is coming to an end.
"When we go up against the top four teams, if we can do our work and take points off them, then that will help us in terms of the ambitions we have," he added.
"Along the way, I'm convinced this year and as we've already seen, the top teams will lose more points than they've ever done.
"That's not with the benefit of hindsight. I sensed that at the beginning of the season.
"I just felt there were a lot of strong teams, ourselves included, that could cause those teams a problem."
