Bournemouth manager Eddie Howe has admitted that he has been impressed with the start that Pep Guardiola has made at Manchester City.

Since replacing Manuel Pellegrini, Guardiola has won each of his seven games in charge of the North-West club, and ahead of his side's trip to the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon, Howe has acknowledged that his players cannot afford to under-perform.

The 38-year-old is quoted by the club's official website as saying: "It's a great challenge for us. I see Manchester City as potential champions. They have a manager who, in my opinion, is right at the very top - they've obviously started incredibly well.

"The impact that the new manager has had early on is the biggest compliment I can give him, he's stamped his authority on the team. I don't usually say this about opponents but I enjoy watching them.

"We go there off the back of our first win for the season, it was a great day last Saturday. It will be a difficult game though, we're going to have to be at the very top of our game and they may have to have a day where they don't perform so well, if those two things happen then we have a chance."

The Cherries head into the game having registered a 1-0 win over West Bromwich Albion last weekend.