Manchester City on title track, believes Pellegrini

City now sit third in the table on 36 points, just three behind Arsenal and Leicester City at the half-way point of the campaign. “It’s a miracle what we are doing”.

Manchester City: Hart; Kolarov, Mangala, Otamendi, Sagna; Fernandinho, Toure; Sterling, Silva, de Bruyne; Aguero.

“Maybe we have to finish a little bit better and improve the amount of offensive moments we have, but I think we are in the correct way”.

“Yes of course we are in a good position”, said Pellegrini. After the weekend defeat to Liverpool, it was important to bounce back with a positive result and that’s what we did. I think that he is a very professional player.

In conclusion, City will perhaps go into this meeting unchanged as they go in search of a winning start to 2016 with Arsenal taking on Newcastle United aiming to protect their lead over their rivals.

He added: “I’m sure it’s (the Club’s perceptions) going to remain the same, which is taking each game at a time to see how far we can really get”.

After successive matches against two of the biggest clubs in the land, Claudio Ranieri’s men host Bournemouth on Saturday – but the Italian insists that will be the tougher fixture.

“I remember the match there and against Arsenal the first half an hour they played very well”.

City’s clean sheet against Leicester was their first this season without injured captain Vincent Kompany, who could be out for another month with calf trouble.

Kompany had missed the eight games prior to stepping off the bench against the Black Cats, while he has since missed Tuesday’s goalless draw at Leicester.

For Pellegrini, the most pressing issue right now is getting to the bottom of Vincent Kompany’s injury problems. Like Arsenal, they have a goalkeeper who oozes class, and who could just be the difference between a title win and finishing among the chasing pack.

“I think the squad is complete”, said the City boss.

City don’t convince at all this season and the value is with backing a home win.

– Manchester City are winless in their last six Premier League away games (W0 D3 L3) – their longest run without an away win since April 2011 (also six games).

“We were very solid and defended well against a hard team”.

No doubt both Vardy and Mahrez are on several teams’ shortlists for the upcoming transfer windows, especially the younger Mahrez who’s having the sort of season we were expecting from another 24-year-old, named Eden Hazard.