• Premier League

City title will be triumph for style - Pellegrini

Manuel Pellegrini finally admitted he expects to win the title after Manchester City thrashed Aston Villa 4-0 and says their glory will represent a triumph for beautiful football.

City, who are two points clear of second-placed Liverpool and have a superior goal difference, only need a draw against West Ham on Sunday to lift the Premier League trophy for the second time in three years.

They became just the second side in 50 years to reach a century of goals in a single English top-flight season when Yaya Toure scored their fourth against Villa.

"Of course I expect to win the title because now we are top of the table," Pellegrini said. "Now we can talk about the title because if we win the next game we are going to win the title. We could not do the same before this game because we had to beat Aston Villa."

Only the Chelsea side of 2009-10 had managed 100 Premier League goals before Edin Dzeko, with two, Stevan Jovetic and Toure scored to to take City to the landmark.

The current Chelsea team bears a striking contrast to Carlo Ancelotti's title winners, however, with Pellegrini having had his differences this season with Jose Mourinho; the self-proclaimed Special One has been criticised for his defensive tactics, not least by Brendan Rodgers for "parking two buses" in their 2-0 win at Liverpool.

Mourinho had hit back at the Liverpool manager by slamming the "stupid" football "philosophers" who have attacked his approach to the game, but Pellegrini insists it is important to win the right way.

Edin Dzeko scored twice against Aston Villa © PA Photos

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Pellegrini added: "It will be very important, not only [to win] the title but in the way we are going to win the title if finally we win it.

"We have a style of play, we are an attractive team, we score many goals and we are always thinking to score more goals. That to me has the same importance as winning the title.

"I am very happy to win the title this way. There are different ways to win titles. I choose this one with attractive football so that the fans enjoy the season. For me, the aesthetic part is very important.

"We always try to play as a creative team and we have creative players. The characteristics of the players, with Fernandinho, with Yaya, with Samir [Nasri], with [David] Silva, Jovetic and [Sergio] Aguero are technical players and we try to give them the ball as much as we can as a team."

Pellegrini also singled out Toure after he became only the second central midfielder to score 20 Premier League goals in a season after Frank Lampard.

He said: "It is an amazing amount of goals. Yaya is the absolute complete midfielder in the way we plays. He scores goals, he marks, he is the complete midfielder. He plays with the freedom to do what he thinks is best."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd