• Champions League

Yaya warns against City boasting

Yaya Toure: 'I don't think we should say we can win the Champions League' © Getty Images

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Yaya Toure believes Manchester City can do "fantastically well" in the Champions League this season but is playing down talk the club are ready to win the competition.

City head to Bayern Munich on Tuesday night in what is likely to represent a severe test of their credentials, but there appears to be a belief at the club that they can cause an upset.

City need to ensure they do not fall off the pace in a group also featuring Napoli and Villarreal - Mancini this week described it as "the hardest group in the Champions League because there are four teams who could go through" - but Toure is optimistic about the team's chances.

"I don't think there is a big space between us and the top teams in this competition," Toure said in the Sun. "You look at the game at Tottenham - we played fantastically.

"They're a big team and did well in the Champions League last year - they got to the quarter-finals - so that shows we have a fantastic squad and, for me, this year we can do well. I'm just pleased we are in it. We can do fantastically well this year."

Despite his optimism, Toure believes it would be premature to rate City among the serious contenders for the trophy given the quality possessed by Barcelona, his former employers.

"It's very hard work to win this competition," he said. "It's one of the best competitions in the world and it's only the top teams that you play.

"I don't think we should say we can win it with teams like Barcelona around. The most important thing is to get to the second stage and then see, but you need players with the Champions League experience. We have more quality now with the likes of Samir Nasri and Sergio Aguero."

He added: "The team is improving every week. On the training ground you see how hard we work. It's fantastic for the club to be in it. It's very important for us and we need to improve. All the top players want to be part of this. It's an amazing competition."

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