Manchester City have been back in training this week, ahead of this weekend's Manchester derby.
City host rivals United in the 188th meeting between the two teams. Both sides head into it in fine form, with City unbeaten so far this season, while Erik ten Hag's men are on a superb run of four straight Premier League wins.
Pictures of City stars have emerged from their first training session at the City Football Academy following the recent international break. Sunday's fixture is City's first since September 17 when they beat Wolves impressively 3-0 at Molineux. As for United, it represents their first outing in the competition for almost a month. They last played a league game on September 4 when they beat Arsenal 3-1. Here are four things we spotted from City's training snaps:
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Pep's conversation with Mahrez
Winger Riyad Mahrez was City's top scorer last term but has failed to get off the mark this term.
In fact, he has only started three of their nine games in all competitions so far.
Pictures from training show Guardiola giving a detailed talk to the Algerian, perhaps mindful about his slow start to the campaign. After a season which saw him score 24 goals in all competitions last term (11 in the Premier League), a pep talk from the manager may be just what Mahrez requires.
Spirits high
Erling Haaland and Kevin de Bruyne, who were both busy in the last week representing Norway and Belgium respectively, were seen having a joke in between training drills. And why not, as the pair have clearly got on like a house on fire when it comes to their relationship on the pitch since Haaland arrived from Dortmund.
The striker is the top scorer in the league with a staggering 11 goals whilst De Bruyne has six assists to his name already. They'll be looking to add to those tallies on Sunday.
Laporte on the grass
Aymeric Laporte hasn't featured at all for City this season as he continues his recovery from knee surgery. His last outing was the final game of last season, the memorable 3-2 win over Aston Villa which confirmed the league title.
Encouraging signs for City and Guardiola are that he was pictured back out on the grass and with a ball at his feet. Guardiola has estimated a return to action by October, although this weekend's derby is almost certainly too soon for the Spanish international.
Alvarez working hard
Argentine forward Julian Alvarez has an unenviable task in playing understudy to Haaland at City.
But so far the 22-year-old has impressed with a brace against Nottingham Forest in his only league start. Cameos are likely to be the order of the day for the ex-River Plate star but he will be eager to show he is capable of stepping up when required.
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